How The 2014 FIFA World Cup Became The Worse Publicity Stunt In History

Back in 2007, when Brazil was awarded the right to host the 2014 FIFA World Cup, the South American nation was experiencing its best economic period in decades. That year Brazil’s economy expanded by 4.5%, thanks to capital flowing into the country from foreign investors. Inflation was under control and the currency strong. And the gap between the rich and the poor finally seemed to be shrinking a bit. The country of the future was, at last, catching up with its vast potential.

Fast-forward to May 2014: consumer confidence has plummeted, and the economy contracted in consecutive quarters (from Q4 2013 to Q1 2014) for the first time since the depths of the 2008-09 global financial crisis, and about two weeks prior to hosting the biggest single-event sporting extravaganza on earth, Brazil is in the midst of a degree of chaos that in no way resembles the image of the country that was sold by its leaders to the world seven years ago. ...

See the whole story here, courtesy of Forbes.

Kicking Back Comments: A good article that details how political ambitions coupled with a country that may not quite have the infrastructure to pull off something of a World Cup scale may be bad for the host ... and horrible for FIFA.