BRASILIA, July 20, (Agencies): The Brazilian government announced measures on Monday to speed up preparations to host the soccer World Cup in 2014, boosting spending and cutting red tape for public works projects.
The move follows growing concern in recent weeks, including by the soccer world governing body FIFA, that preparations for the sporting event were seriously delayed.
The debate put the spotlight on numerous obstacles to investment in Brazil’s fast-growing economy and angered President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who has been touting the tournament as an accomplishment of his government ahead of October’s presidential election.
Brazil will also host the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.
In a signing ceremony arranged at short notice, Lula pledged 5.5 billion reais ($3.1 billion) to revamp airports in the 12 cities that will host the soccer tournament.
He also lifted restrictions on the ability of cities to raise debt to pay for infrastructure such as roads, stadiums and trains.
Lula, who called some of the concerns senseless, said the latest measures would avoid problems Brazil had with funding the 2007 Pan-American Games in Rio de Janeiro.
The federal government also donated real estate and earmarked 740 million reais on Monday to allow seven cities, including Rio de Janeiro, to overhaul their ports and facilitate docking of large cruise ships. “Certainly it will be an alternative to the lack of hotels,” said Pedro Brito, the ports minister.
Lula blamed the Sao Paulo state government, which until April was run by the opposition presidential candidate Jose Serra, for failing to provide an adequate stadium to host the World Cup.
“Frankly, I can’t imagine a World Cup in Brazil without Sao Paulo as one of the corners for athletes to play ball,” Lula said during the ceremony in the capital Brasilia.
In Osaka, Japan’s football chief said he felt FIFA inspectors had gained a “considerable understanding” of the country’s bid to host the 2022 World Cup, including its promise of global 3-D broadcasts.
The Japanese bidders gave a three-hour presentation on the World Cup plans to a globetrotting five-member inspection team from the sport’s world governing body.
The team, led by Chilean Football Federation President Harold Mayne-Nicholls, arrived Monday on a four-day visit to Japan, the first leg of a two-month tour of nine candidates vying to host the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.
FIFA’s 24 executives will choose the 2018 and 2022 World Cup hosts on Dec 2 in Zurich.
“I could feel that all of the five people have read our bid book well and have a considerable understanding of Japan’s concept,” Japan Football Association president Motoaki Inukai told a news conference.
He heads the bid committee for Japan, which co-hosted the 2002 World Cup with South Korea.
In its bid book submitted to FIFA in May, Japan promised to treat football fans worldwide to ultra-realistic live three-dimensional broadcasts of matches.
Under the six-billion-dollar “Universal Fan Fest” project, matches would be viewed in 3-D by 360 million people at nearly 400 select stadiums in FIFA’s 208 member countries.
The games would be shown on giant screens at the stadiums or — if technological advances allow — even projected like a real match onto the pitch itself.
The FIFA team was also briefed on construction of a 83,000-seat stadium in Osaka, tentatively named Osaka Ecology Stadium, which would host the opening match and final and operate on solar power.
Immediately after their arrival in Osaka Monday, the team used a helicopter to see the site, a former railway yard near the central station which has been redeveloped into a commercial centre.
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Australia not concerned: Australian football officials remain confident in their bid for the 2022 World Cup despite reports that China wants to host the 2026 tournament.
There is little likelihood of Asian countries hosting two World Cups in succession, which means any formal bid from China would put enormous pressure on 2022 bids by Australia, Japan, Qatar and South Korea.
Football Federation Australia said it was confident China’s interest in hosting the 2026 tournament would not impact on its chances.
“We can’t and don’t really want to comment directly about whatever anyone else may or may not be doing,” an FFA spokesman told The Australian newspaper on Tuesday.
“However, we are very confident that we have a compelling case to host the FIFA World Cup in 2022.
“Our bid is complete. It has been submitted and is supported by full government guarantees and we will be promoting it up until the decision by FIFA on Dec 2.
“We know we have a lot of competition but we believe we are a safe pair of hands in Asia and have a fantastic record of holding huge events including the best Olympics ever in Sydney in 2000,” he added.
“Australia is the only continent yet to hold a World Cup and by providing us the honour of hosting one would be a huge benefit to all of Asia and Oceania.”
Wei Di, head of the Chinese Football Association (CFA), has said China has been inspired by the success of the tournament in South Africa.
“It really moved us to see all the social benefits South Africa got from hosting the World Cup,” Wei told the nation’s leading sports newspaper Titan Sports earlier this week.
“The CFA is preparing to ask the General Administration of Sport to bid for the 2026 World Cup,” he was quoted as saying.
“Everyone has been debating whether China should bid for the World Cup or when to bid, but seeing how successfully South Africa hosted it, I have to say that China has no reason not to bid and now is the best time.”
China did not qualify for this year’s World Cup in South Africa. Its only appearance in football’s global showcase came in 2002.
The bidding process for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups is currently under way, and the winners will be announced by the sport’s governing body FIFA on Dec 2.