Rio de Janeiro today presented its proposal to be the main center for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, which will be held in 12 Brazilian cities. Already confirmed as one of the football match host cities, Rio reinforced its interest in being the official base for FIFA and the Media Center, and to host the World Cup Final itself at the Maracanã. Planned infrastructure projects and improvements in the environment, transport and accommodation were described in Rio’s Candidature File to host the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games, demonstrating the synergy between the plans for the two major events. 

Held at the Palácio da Cidade, home of Rio’s city government, the event was attended by Governor Sérgio Cabral; Mayor Eduardo Paes; Ricardo Teixeira, president of the 2014 World Cup organizing committee and the Brazilian Football Confederation, and member of FIFA’s executive committee; and Rio 2016 Chief Operations Officer Carlos Luiz Martins. Mayor Paes announced total investment of R$430 million to remodel and modernize the Maracanã, as well as the granting of an 11,000 square meter plot of land in Barra da Tijuca to build the new headquarters of the Brazilian Football Confederation and a Museum of Football. “It is important to receive all this support from Rio de Janeiro,” said Ricardo Teixeira. “The Museum of Football and the Brazilian Football Confederation headquarters will become new tourist attractions for the city, attracting people who currently visit the Maracanã. Since the beginning, the state and city governments of Rio de Janeiro have been supporting our World Cup preparations, just as they are now working hard to bring Rio the 2016 Olympic Games.”

Many of the commitments taken on by Rio de Janeiro for the 2014 World Cup are mirrored in the city’s bid for the 2016 Olympic Games, such as expanding the international airport’s capacity to 20 million passengers per year, providing more incentives to grow the city’s hotel accommodations, the revitalization of the port area, and the modernization of the transport system. The latter includes the implementation of a Bus Rapid Transit system consisting of three express bus corridors, with tubular stations similar to those seen in metros, connecting Barra da Tijuca to the city’s north and west zones. “These improvements will generate extra income and business for the city, not least by increasing the number of visitors. Major sports events leave fundamental urban and social legacies for the city,” said Governor Cabral.

In the view of Rio 2016’s Carlos Luiz Martins, the commitments described at the event demonstrate that the 2014 World Cup will leave important legacies for Rio 2016. “We have the guarantee that two years before the Olympic Games we will have concluded a major part of the infrastructure works set out in our Candidature File. Rio de Janeiro has already shown that it has the potential to receive major sports events. The 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympic Games will leave an historic mark on the city and the whole of Brazil,” said Martins.