Cost of the Cup

It is hard to come to Brazil with the excitement and anticipation of the World Cup and think of the people of Brazil that it has truly affected the most. I think people come from all over the world painting their faces and wearing their countries flags on their backs to show up to a newly built stadium to watch their national team in the biggest football tournament. Some come by motor home, stay on the beach and all they see is the road from their party on Copacabana to the game at the newly renovated Maracana Stadium. Others fly into the airport, taxi to their hotel, which is located very close to the stadium and only travel to and from because they are concerned with their safety. Do any of these people really see what has happened behind the scenes or considered the costs that have gone into everything to make the experience everything it can be for these tourists? I know coming I certainly didn't. I had no idea the numbers that not only went into the stadiums but the airports, hotels, road construction and advertisements. Not only does there need to be money spent on health care, education and transportation but also in the local favelas. I was able to see firsthand some of the living conditions and poverty in one of the local favelas while helping with an organization called Football for Kids (#cheerforpeace.)  

According to the article A Brief History of Soccer Stadiums in Brazil (2014), by Antonio Holzmeister, John Bale purposes that there are four stages of stadiums. The "fourth stage corresponds to the modern soccer stadium, now built out of concrete instead of wood, guided by a disciplinary logic, with internal TV circuits and a fully segregated public, each having its own sector within the stadium according to the price of the ticket." (p. 66) These are the kinds of stadiums that have been built for the 2014 World Cup being hosted in Brazil. Throughout the country there are 12 host cities where games are being played in either new or redeveloped stadiums.  From How the cost of Brazil's World Cup stacks up against other global sporting events an article from the Business Spectator, Harrison Polities said, "the government spent an estimated $US11 billion to renovate existing stadiums, build new sporting grounds and reinforce core infrastructure ahead of the event." Below is a picture of how this World Cup relates to other sporting events around the world. 

 

Because of the construction of these stadiums this is what most of the riots are being directed toward. It is not the cup itself being hosted in Brazil that upsets the majority of Brazil but the copious amounts of dollars that are being spent on the construction of these stadiums. One particular example of a stadium that is being renovated is the Bezarrão stadium in Brasilia. Holzmeister states, "one such expenditure for public works serving mostly as political propaganda for local politicians and governments was the Bezarrão stadium, in Brasilia, which consumed 50 million reals (roughly 25 million Canadian dollars) of public coffers in order to renovate a stadium that, at most, will be used as a training camp during the World Cup." This is a shocking number to me, especially in the way that it is being used. To invest that much money into a stadium that will be used for training when there are so many other areas that need this money both surprises and disappoints me.

How is a country able to justify spending these dollars on stadiums that will only be used for training centres or three to five World Cup games then have no use. Manaus, Cuiabá and Rio Branco, are three cities with no professional soccer played, but each had a newly built stadium for the Cup. I talked to lady who lived in Curitiba her whole life and grew up both adoring and playing football. We had a conversation while watching a World Cup game on a small restaurant screen in Curitiba that was being played in Manaus. I asked her, her opinion on Brazil hosting the World Cup thinking she would be thrilled and proud because she made it obvious that she loved soccer. Her response to my question was, "It is very hard for me to give a straight answer. I love football, I always have and always will. Of course I am happy that my country is able to host it. But, from the other side people are dying every day here in the streets, education is very, very expensive and Curitiba is the only place with a good transportation system. If I go to Rio, even though I am native to Brazil, I find it very difficult to get around. The government has taken one billion reals away from the people to invest in the construction of the Arena da Amazonia stadium in Manaus. After the cup is over there will be no use for this stadium as there is no team or league that plays in this area." Like the stadium in Brasilia there is so much money and resources being invested into something that will hardly be used in only a matter of three and a half weeks when this whole World Cup craze is over. 

This 2014 World Cup may be similar to the 2016 Olympics when billions of dollars will be spent on building infrastructures like field hockey and rugby stadiums when Brazil does not even have a population that participates in these sports. Like the stadium in Manaus these infrastructures will have no use. Should these buildings be built just for the sake of entertainment for a few short weeks? Someone to think about!