Early this year, football, the only sport in the Rio 2016™ Olympic and Paralympic Games to be held in more than one city, will celebrate the inauguration of four of the five stadiums that will host matches in both the men’s and women’s events: Mineirão, in Belo Horizonte; Brasilia’s Mané Garrincha National Stadium; the Fonte Nova Arena, in Salvador; and Maracanã, in Rio de Janeiro. The other city to host matches during the competition is São Paulo.

A type of mini Organising Committee will be set up in each city, under the management of the main Rio de Janeiro committee, as explained by the Rio 2016™ Sporting Competition coordinator, Guilherme Marques.

“All the operational areas of the Organising Committee, such as transport, sports, accommodation, food and beverage, venues and branding will have representatives in the cities hosting Olympic football”, stated Marques.

According to Marques, the municipal and state authorities’ support for Rio 2016™ at these locations will be fundamental to the event’s success. Even more relevant is the fact that Brazil is hosting the Confederations Cup in 2013 and the World Cup in 2014.

“We will be privileged to receive these venues after the World Cup. Consequently, we will try to work with FIFA to understand what worked well and what didn’t. We are going to make the most of the experience of those involved in the World Cup, people with knowledge of FIFA’s requirements”, explained the former beach volleyball player, who also stated that the Rio 2016™ Committee has to provide four training grounds in each city for teams participating in the Olympic tournament.

State championship matches mark the re-opening of Mineirão and Fonte Nova

The first stadium of the Rio 2016™ Olympic Games to be completed, Mineirão was re-inaugurated on 03 February with a 2-1 victory by Cruzeiro over local rival Atlético (MG) in Belo Horizonte. On 24 April, the Brazilian national team played their first match in the refurbished stadium, drawing 2-2 with Chile. With a capacity of 62,547, Mineirão stadium is close to Lagoa da Pampulha. The stadium retains its original facade, some of its canopy and its upper grandstand.

The Fonte Nova Arena, in Salvador, was the second stadium to be handed over to the population. With a capacity of 50,433, the state of Bahia’s new football stage boasts modern changing rooms with Jacuzzis, showers and individual lockers.

Built on the same site as the old Fonte Nova, demolished in August 2010, the arena was inaugurated with a match between Bahia and Vitória, marking the return of the state of Bahia’s biggest derby in its capital city after a long six-year absence. During the Confederations Cup the stadium will stage three matches, including the face-off between Brazil and Italy.

The stage for Brazil’s opening game against Japan in the Confederations Cup on 15 June, the Mané Garrincha National Stadium in Brasília was inaugurated on 18 May. The stadium has a capacity of 70,800, with the front row of spectators seated just seven metres from the pitch. A dedicated press area capable of accommodating 2,850 journalists also forms part of the structure. The stadium will be open at full capacity on 26 May to stage the clash between Santos and Flamengo, valid for the first round of the Brazilian Championship.

The setting for both semi-finals and final of the Rio 2016™ Olympic Games, Maracanã’s present capacity stands at 78,838. The stadium held it first test event at the end of April, but will be inaugurated officially on 02 June, when Brazil and England meet for the 25th time since their initial clash in 1956. Among the statistics relating to the new Maracanã, its 60 public bars, six access ramps and four electronic scoreboards, each measuring ninety-eight square metres, deserve special mention.