News of the start of much-delayed building work at the 65,000-seat venue emerged on Tuesday as Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff met with 11 of the 12 cities slated to host matches during the tournament.
The Sao Paulo stadium is scheduled to be completed six months before the start of the World Cup. The stadia at Sao Paulo and Natal will not be included as host venues for the 2013 Confederations Cup due to delays in construction work, but it is hoped that the news of Corinthians’ stadium will ease FIFA fears about the rate of preparations ahead of the 2014 showpiece.
At the weekend, FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke admitted concerns over delays in improving Brazil’s transport infrastructure, particularly in relation to the country’s overcrowded airports. “Concerns remain with regard to airport operations and capacities as well as transport infrastructure,” stated Valcke, according to The Associated Press.
“It is crucial that any venues which host the World Cup have adequate infrastructure to be able to cater for the tens of thousands of spectators and allow them to move around the city for a particular match,” he added. “If this is not the case, we cannot stage matches in those cities.”
Rousseff recently announced that the country's airports will be opened up to private investment to ensure they are completed in time for the World Cup. Sao Paulo, the biggest city in Brazil, has already been ruled out of the running to host the tournament’s International Broadcast Centre, with Rio de Janeiro the likely destination.
