With São Paulo, Brazil´s biggest city (population 20+ million) and financial hub, still yet to guarantee its seemingly obvious position as host of the 2014 World Cup Opening Match (given Rio de Janeiro will host the final), the country´s sport minister Orlando Silva has once again attempted to force the issue by putting an April deadline for works on the city´s most likely host stadium.
To be built from scratch in the eastern quadrant of Sao Paulo, the Itaquerão Stadium is being developed by the Corinthians Football Club, one of Brazil´s oldest and biggest, on land donated to the club in the 1980s. Although Corinthians has only backed the development of a 40,000 seat facility, the São Paulo government is facilitating an expansion to 65,000 for the Cup Opening.
Various issues in relation to the stadium remain unresolved, including the structure of National Development Bank financing, the final budget of contracted developer Oderbrecht, and certain legal and council issues involving the site.
Beyond these, the actual stadium design is also in question, with FIFA having highlighted in February a range of areas requiring alterations, including the final design of temporary seating structures, certain spaces determined too small in key areas and the quality of finishes in others.
The sport minister said the April deadline is crucial to ensure the city´s preparations meet the chronology demanded by the 2014 Cup.
If the unthinkable happens and the city does not provide a suitable stadium in time, the main contenders for the Opening match are Belo Horizonte, Brazil´s mining capital and third main hub, the country´s capital Brasilia, and Salvador, the first colonial capital of Brazil and one of the oldest in the New World.