Eighty days before the World Cup in Brazil, a survey found that "fewer than half of the host country’s citizens are positive about the monthlong event," according to Tariq Panja of BLOOMBERG. Twenty-four percent of people interviewed by Sao Paulo-based Datafolha said the tournament would be “bad” or “terrible.” Thirty percent said it would be “OK,” 33% “good” and 13% “great.” The polling organization "questioned 2,091 people on Feb. 18 and 19." The survey "highlights the difficulty organizers and the government are having" to win the backing of the football-crazed country for the event. The nation is spending about $11B on the tournament, which will be played in 12 new or refurbished stadiums that cost at least 8B reais ($3.5B), about 40% more than originally estimated. The overspending led to a public backlash, "most clearly seen during Brazil’s biggest protests in a generation which coincided with last year’s Confederations Cup." The survey news comes on the day FIFA General Secretary Jerome Valcke "starts a week of meetings in Rio de Janeiro about preparations for the tournament" (BLOOMBERG, 3/24).
