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Cost of Brazil’s World Cup increases by $1.7 billion Back To Main

14-Nov-2012

Sport Business

Brazilian authorities have revised the estimated cost of public spending on stadiums, airports and other infrastructure for the 2014 FIFA World Cup by more than US$1.7 billion.

The Associated Press reports that Brazil’s Audit Court says the current $13.28 billion price tag for the tournament has increased nearly 15% from the initial estimate of $11.58 billion. The increase has been attributed to the higher-than-expected cost of airport redevelopment and stadium construction.

The court said that while stadium development is progressing at a “satisfactory” rate, work on airports is “moving at a slow pace”. The announcement came after FIFA, last Thursday, retained its original list of six host cities for the 2013 Confederations Cup, relaxing its deadline for delivery of the venues.

Thursday’s announcement in Sao Paulo was preceded by the very real threat that one or more of the cities would be stripped of their hosting rights due to construction delays. However, Rio de Janeiro, Brasilia, Belo Horizonte, Fortaleza, Recife and Salvador will remain as the host cities for the World Cup’s traditional warm-up event, which will begin on June 15. FIFA had previously stated that the venues had to be completed six months ahead of kick-off. That date has now been replaced by an April 15 deadline to begin venue testing.