Protests in Brazil and delays in building stadiums are putting the World Cup next month at risk and prompting tourists to stay away, soccer great Pele said on Monday. Brazil's tournament organizers have faced headwinds since the country was tapped to host the World Cup in 2007.
If attacked in Brazil: Don't fight, scream or argue. That's the advice being offered to tourists by São Paulo Civil Police ahead of this year's World Cup games which authorities have revealed will be enforced by armored, “RoboCop”-styled riot police.
Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff confessed on Thursday evening during dinner with journalists that she is fed up with FIFA chief Joseph Blatter and said the last chapter of protests in the Brazilian cities that will host the World Cup next month were a failure.
Road blocks and marches hit Brazilian cities on Thursday as disparate groups criticized spending on the upcoming World Cup soccer tournament and sought to revive a call for better public services that swept the country last June.
In a 'dialogue without ties' at the World Bank President Jose Mujica said that Uruguay is a 'frontier country' which history did not want it to belong to any of the two big neighbors (Argentina and Brazil) so that the Atlantic ocean would not be left to an only country.
Brazil forecasts that the estimated 3.7 million people expected to visit during the World Cup, including Brazilian and foreign tourists, will boost the country's economy to the tune of 3.03bn. dollars.
President Dilma Rousseff repeated Tuesday that Brazil is a democratic country and that its government guarantees the right to peaceful protest during the World Cup soccer competition, which begins June 12. However protests must not harm the Cup events in any way.
Rio de Janeiro bus drivers on Tuesday began a 48-hour strike that left tens of thousands of people without transportation and caused huge problems in Brazil's second-largest city. Participation in the strike was greater than in the 24-hour effort staged last Thursday when on the streets of Rio scarcely a single bus was to be seen.
The Brazilian government is counting on a strong presence from world leaders during the football World Cup, which kicks off on June 12. Cristina Fernández, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and US vice-president Joe Biden are among the dignitaries expected to attend.
Brazil began deploying over the weekend some 30,000 troops to secure its borders as it prepares to host the World Cup that kicks off next month. The operation involving the army, navy and air force will extend over the 16,900-kilometer frontier separating the South American giant from its 10 neighbors.