Brazil expects succesful 2014 FIFA World Cup

Brazil is already anticipating the economic benefits of hosting the 2014 FIFA World Cup. The initial prediction from Brazil's Ministry of Sport is that around 600 thousand foreign football fans will visit Brazil during the 2014 finals, which will take place in twelve cities: Curitiba and Porto Alegre in the south; Belo Horizonte, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo in the south-east; Cuiabá and Brasília in central Brazil; Manaus in the north; and Fortaleza, Natal, Recife and Salvador in the north-east. It is estimated that the 2014 World Cup will have created more than 300 thousand jobs between 2009, when Brazil was chosen as host country, and the end of the tournament. Major investments in infrastructure, including airports and urban transport, are already taking place in preparation for 2014. The twelve stadiums where the matches will take place are either due to be upgraded or, in three cases, under construction. However, the Ministry of Sport announced this week that every venue will be ready in time for the 2013 Confederations Cup (a smaller-scale international tournament that takes place one year before the World Cup). The largest stadium, and one of the candidates for hosting the World Cup final on 13 July 2014, is Rio de Janeiro's famous Maracanã, which will have a capacity of around 90 thousand. The 2014 World Cup will be the first in South America since the 1978 tournament in Argentina. Brazil will become the fifth country (along with France, Germany, Italy and Mexico) to have hosted the tournament twice, having previously done so in 1950.

RIO DE JANEIRO WILL HOST 2016 OLYMPICS

Thousands of Cariocas celebrate victory at Copacabana beach
It was on October 2 at 1.50 pm local time that Rio de Janeiro (the happiest city on earth according to Forbes magazine)was chosen to host the 2016 Summer Olympics.Thousands of Cariocas (citizens of Rio)celebrated in ecstasy as Jacques Rogge, president of the International Olympic Commitee announced that their city had beaten Madrid, Tokyo and Chicago in the election.
The fun had begun several hours before on the sandy beach in front of the Copacabana Palace, the city´s most famous hotel.Local singers such as Lulu Santos and Revelacao made the anxious crowd dance and sing in front of a giant screen and stage.

"Around the Rings" and "Games Bids", two well known websites that specialize in forecasting the winners of these events, got it wrong this time.Both had predicted that it would be a close finish between Rio and Chicago, but the Northamerican city was eliminated early on along with Tokyo.Not even the presence of Barack Obama and his wife Michelle in Copenhagen could help Chicago´s bid. However Obama was present at Copacabana in the form of a local lookalike ( see the photo).

Brazil´s delegation included President Lula da Silva,Pele,Joao Havelange(former head of FIFA),Paulo Coelho and Sergio Cabral, governor of the state of Rio de Janeiro.Cabral and his successors will have a tough job in order to improve the city´s public transport system and eliminate the drug trafficking gangs.It is normal for scores of people to be killed in shootouts between police and the traffickers each week.Not only will Rio host the Olympics, in 2014 several matches of that years FIFA Football World Cup will be played there, including the final match at the famous Maracana stadium, that will have to be modernized. The announcement of Rio´s victory had an instant effect on the economy.The price of shares in the local stockmarket went up, especially those of airlines and construction companies. The price of the US dollar against the Brazilian Real was greatly devaluated and is at present at 1.77 reals for every dollar.