Two big deadlines are looming for organisers of the 2014 Brazil World Cup, making the next few months a critical period with serious repercussions for the rest of 2010 if things are not dealt with adequately. First, there is FIFA and the Local Organising Committee´s (LOC) already-extended deadline of May 3 for the commencement of works on all host stadia, a date that is unlikely to be met by at least a few of the cities, most of which are still yet to move any earth whatsoever. LOC head Ricardo Teixeira, himself no stranger to a bit of rule bending, last week sent a tough warning to all host cities, stating that they had better have very good, written explanations if the deadline is not met (seriously), and that stronger measures, such as losing their hosting rights, may be taken if things aren't looking good.
Just one month later comes an even more important date, with June 3 marking the final day for Brazilian governments to enter into any kinds of agreements or contracts involving public funds until after this year's election in November; so we are talking 2011. With all but three of the host stadia publically owned and the others reliant on significant government involvement, at least during the upgrading period, the six month lock-out could easily force a range of delays given all of the projects are already behind schedule, such that any prior planning to avoid key decisions during the second half of 2010 may have already been compromised.
This means either some serious work will be done over the coming months to ensure all contracts required for the first stages of work are in place by June, or some serious re-scheduling will start if the deadline is not met; what else will there be to do?