The June 2 friendly between Brazil and England will go on, in spite of
lingering concerns over the safety of the Maracana Stadium.
Judge Adriana Costa dos Santos initially ruled that the match be
suspended due to the stadium being “unfit for action”. It was reported that
rubble outside the recently renovated structure could compromise the safety of
spectators and football teams alike.
The Maracana Stadium will host seven 2014 World Cup games, including
the final. It is considered the “spiritual home of Brazilian football”, and was
first built for the 1950 World Cup.
At the time of Judge Dos Santos’ ruling, the Rio de Janeiro government failed
to submit the documents proving that construction work was finished, and that
the stadium had complied with safety guidelines. The judge did clarify,
however, that the ruling will be overturned if the aforementioned documents
were completed.
The local authority blamed the delay of the paperwork submission to a
“bureaucratic lapse”.
Even if the match will continue, it’s possible that the Brazilian
Football Confederation (CBF) will be fined $1 million. It was the CBF’s
responsibility to organize the construction of the stadium.
Despite all of this, the Football Association and FIFA remained
confident that the match will push through as scheduled.
