Valcke to revisit Brazil venues

FIFA's Secretary General is hoping to see clear progress in Brazil's stadium construction, including Curitiba where the Socceroos play in June.

Curitiba stadium where the Socceroos play in June as seen in December.

FIFA says its Secretary General Jerome Valcke will return to Brazil to visit incomplete stadiums. (AAP)

FIFA says its Secretary General Jerome Valcke will return to Brazil next week to visit three World Cup host cities - Manaus, Brasilia and Porto Alegre.

Valcke will make his latest trip to the host nation from Sunday-Tuesday and be accompanied by Brazilian Minister of Sport, Aldo Rebelo, Deputy Minister of Sport, Luis Fernandes and Local Organizing Committee (LOC) head Ricardo Trade.

He will start out at the Arena Amazonia in Manaus, where last Friday a construction worker was killed in the third fatal accident to hit the venue.

Afterwards, Valcke will go to the capital Brasilia, before heading south to Porto Alegre.

Thereafter, he will transfer to the southeastern city of Florianapolis to attend a pre-World Cup workshop for the 32 teams ahead of an LOC Board meeting on Friday.

On his last visit to Brazil three weeks ago, Valcke warned that Curitiba risked being dropped as a World Cup venue with its stadium running behind schedule.

He said he expected to see evidence of clear progress by next Tuesday that the Arena da Baixada stadium, where the Socceroos play against Spain on June 23, can be ready for delivery in late April or early May.

Brazil has been struggling to complete tournament preparations with only seven of the 12 venues ready to date.

Of the six not used in last year's Confederations Cup dress rehearsal only Natal has been inaugurated.

FIFA last year insisted all 12 venues met a December 31 deadline.

But the organisation had to drop the condition, not least after a series of fatal accidents at Manaus, Brasilia and Sao Paulo costing six lives.


2 min read

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Source: AAP


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