Early in April, the now former Governor of São Paulo Geraldo Alckmin inaugurated a metro line connecting São Paulo’s city center to the international airport of Guarulhos, on its outskirts. The line was supposed to have become operational in time for Brazil’s 2014 World Cup. Instead, it took four extra years and an additional BRL 101 million to get it done.
This is just one example of how football’s main event didn’t leave such a lasting legacy on Brazil, despite the authorities claiming it would.
When Brazil was chosen as the host country for the 2014 World Cup, it was seen as proof that the country had finally made it. We were strengthening our soft power and were regarded as one of the world’s most important countries. Plus, the World Cup would leave a much-needed “legacy,” as public administrations would finally carry out infrastructure, transportation, and sanitation projects which should have been done decades ago.
“It was a disaster. On the pitch, we experienced Brazil’s worst pounding in history [the 7-1 defeat to Germany in the semifinals]. Off it, we built eight white elephants – all overpriced -, which only served to turn football into a pastime of the elite, and most of the infrastructure projects that...
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