Ambev Will Finance $17M Temporary Stands For São Paulo World Cup Stadium

In a partnership with the São Paulo government and Brasileiro club Corinthians, brewing company Ambev "will finance the temporary stands" for the Itaquerão stadium, according to Fabio Leite of FOLHA DE S. PAULO. With the partnership, Corinthians' stadium will go from 47,000 seats to 67,000 during the 2014 World Cup. For São Paulo to host the opening match of the tournament, FIFA demanded a minimum capacity of 60,000. Ambev "should sign a contract" with a temporary stand provider before the end of the year. Ambev board of directors co-Chair Victorio de Marchi said, "We are certain that with this financial support Corinthians' arena will meet the demands of FIFA" (FOLHA DE S. PAULO, 11/27). LANCE NET reported that the investment "is close to" R$35M ($16.8M), which is half of what the São Paulo government had originally estimated. Currently, the Itaquerão stadium is 55% done, and is scheduled to be finished between Sept. and Dec. '13 (LANCE NET, 11/27).