Brazil bets on the legacy of 2014 with the Women’s Cup – 03/02/2024 – Sport

Candidate to host the Women’s World Cup in 2027, Brazil is betting on the legacy of the 2014 World Cup and on the retrospective of sporting events held in the country to beat the competition from joint bids from Mexico and the United States and Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands.

Being able to count on the structures prepared for the World Cup held in Brazil ten years ago, the expenses to host the competition should be relatively modest. According to preliminary calculations prepared by the Brazilian candidacy, the costs should be mainly related to temporary installations in the stadiums, totaling around R$65 million. The projected revenue from ticket sales, accommodation and sponsorships is around R$500 million.

The decision on the hosting of the 2027 Women’s World Cup will be announced during the FIFA (International Football Federation) Congress, scheduled to take place on May 8 in Bangkok, Thailand.

According to Valesca Araújo, responsible for planning the event’s infrastructure and operations, the idea of ​​launching the candidacy was taken up by the then Minister of Sports, Ana Moser, due to the understanding that an event of this magnitude represents a powerful social tool, capable of bringing more visibility and support for women’s football.

“The country has been promoting important work to develop women’s football since 2015, but there is still a lot to improve and the World Cup, with the presence of great athletes and teams, can accelerate this process”, says Araújo.

President of the CBF (Brazilian Football Confederation), Ednaldo Rodrigues assesses that Brazil is well prepared to host the event, having built a positive history over the last decade that qualifies it as hosting the World Cup.

“We have our successful ten-year track record in planning, organizing and holding major sporting competitions, as well as our long-term strategy in developing and promoting women’s football, which has had an exclusive calendar for women’s competitions since 2020,” he said. Rodrigues.

In addition to the 2014 World Cup, Brazil has hosted the Pan American Games in 2007, the Olympic Games in 2016, and the Copa América in 2019 and 2021 in recent years.

The top hat also said that the objective is to make the 2027 World Cup a springboard for girls and women around the world who are considering a career in football, both on and off the field.

The Brazilian bid has ten cities to host the 64 World Cup games, two less than the 2014 World Cup, in order to bring greater logistical comfort and reduce costs and travel time for the teams.

Brazil entered the dispute with the cities, and their respective stadiums, of Belo Horizonte (Estadio do Mineirão), Brasília (Mané Garrincha), Cuiabá (Arena Pantanal), Fortaleza (Arena Castelão), Manaus (Arena Amazônia), Porto Alegre (Beira-Rio Stadium), Recife (Arena Pernambuco), Salvador (Arena Fonte Nova), São Paulo (Neo Química Arena) and Rio de Janeiro (Maracanã).

The opening and closing games are scheduled to take place in the capital of Rio, with the tournament starting on June 24, 2027 and the final on July 25. During this period, the main football tournaments in the country will be suspended.

As the ten stadiums were used in the 2014 World Cup and are in good condition, the main expense related to the event in 2027 would be the assembly of temporary structures.

According to the calculations of the Brazilian candidacy, these expenses should total around US$13.3 million (R$65 million) and involve, for example, the erection of tents to receive guests and the press and to hold meetings. Financing would come through partners and sponsors from FIFA and CBF, without the use of public funds.

Public spending, says Araújo, would basically be directed to issues such as improvements to access on streets close to the stadiums and related to security in the surrounding area.

“We know the importance of having this legacy ready and the tendency is for us to have a much lower cost than it was in the 2014 World Cup”, says Athirson Mazzoli, former full-back revealed by Flamengo, who took over in January as National Secretary of Football and Defense of Fans’ Rights at the Ministry of Sports.

In the World Cup won by Germany, public spending totaled around R$35 billion. “Brazil is ready to host the World Cup”, says the secretary, adding that he cannot yet speak about the amounts that must be spent by the public coffers if Brazil is chosen as the host of the 2027 World Cup.

Brazil is also committed to providing fans with free transport to and from the stadiums, making agreements with the bodies responsible for public transport in the host cities.

“Brazil hosted the 2014 World Cup very well, we received a very large audience, causing the economy to heat up again and with an improvement in transport in the cities”, says Athirson, who will be at the head of a working group to coordinate the necessary projects if the country is chosen.

Still according to the estimates presented by the Brazilian candidacy, the revenue generated by the 2027 Women’s World Cup, not counting the broadcasting rights, negotiated directly by FIFA after the official choice of the venue, tends to fluctuate around US$ 100 million (R $496 million).

Of this amount, most of the amount raised would come from ticket sales (US$57.4 million; R$286 million) and accommodation expenses (US$29.5 million; R$147 million), in addition to US$ 10 million (R$50 million) via private sponsorship.

According to the person responsible for planning the event, there is still no definition regarding the hotel chain that will receive the teams and tourists who will come to the country, which will only occur after FIFA’s announcement. The teams must also wait for the group draw to be able to more precisely establish their base in the country during the competition.

During the 2023 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, won by Spain, around 90,000 tourists were in both countries to watch the matches, according to Manuela Biz, communications consultant for the Brazilian bid. The expectation is that Brazil can surpass the visitors who will come to the country to watch the 2027 World Cup.

“We want it, we know how to do it and we are ready,” says Araújo. “And the rest of the world loves coming here,” she adds.