Brazilians are famous for their “Telenovelas” which are more often called Novelas. Novelas are similar to American Soap Operas yet very different. One of the main differences is that the Brazilian Novela has an ending whereas the American Soap Opera continues and never ends. A Brazilian Novela last about six months and generally has a happy ending!
The Brazil World Cup TeleNovela seems to be the best way to describe the situation between the World Cup Preparations, the Brazilian Government and FIFA.
There has been a lot of criticism over Brazil’s delays in construction of the new stadiums for the World Cup along with the lack of infrastructure in the country. Another inflammatory issue is over the country’s ban on the sale of alcohol at the stadiums to reduce violence.
And as if all of that wasn’t enough then Brazil asked FIFA to replace Secretary General Jerome Valcke after he insulted them by telling them they needed a kick up the backside to get on target for the World Cup. Shortly after this event Valcke sent a letter of apology for his remark. After this public spat the President of FIFA Sepp Blatter made plans to visit Brazil to meet with Brazil’s president Dilma Rousseff.
To add a little more drama to the novela there was an announcement recently that Brazil’s Football President Ricardo Teixeira was resigning after serving in this role for 23 years because of several allegations of corruption.
Last Friday Sepp Blatter met with president Rousseff in Brazil to help ease the tensions and restore their relationship with the host country. Just like a good Brazilian Novela this meeting had a happy ending and everyone had smiles on their faces! Blatter gave the Brazilian president a gift which was a framed photo of the two of them with Brazil’s football icon Pele. Both sides called the meeting constructive and seemed satisfied with the results.
Hopefully things will go smoothly from here on and there will be less drama involved in the World Cup preparations. And like a good Brazilian Telenovela, I think the World Cup 2014 will have a happy ending!
Brought to you by: World Cup Brazil 2014
