Brazil prepares for 2014 FIFA World Cup
March 7, 2013
FIFA Secretary General Jerome Valcke arrived in Recife, Brazil on March 5 to observe progress at the Arena Pernambuco in Recife, one of the stadiums where the 2014 FIFA World Cup is planned to take place. The current deadline for the stadium's completion is April 15, 2013, even though the original deadline was December 2012. There have also been concerns that Maracana stadium in Rio de Janiero has had too many setbacks, including a problem with flooding, but preparations are steadily continuing. FIFA says it will be ready on April 27.
Despite the concerns over where the players will complete, there is growing confidence in how the players will arrive. Guarulhos Airport, the largest airport in Brazil, is located an hour by car outside of São Paulo city and is building a new terminal. At present, they have enough space for 58 aircraft at a time, but plans to build more plane parking are underway. They have a lot of progress to make before the games. According to Forbes, 32 million passengers traveled through GRU in 2012, but when Terminal 3 is completed, the airport plans to handle 45 million a year.
Those interested in the progress behind the 2014 FIFA World Cup can make calls to Brazil with international phone cards.