Facility Notes: Brazilian Officials Unveil World Cup Stadium In Manaus

Brazilian officials "are inaugurating the Arena da Amazonia in the jungle city of Manaus, the ninth World Cup stadium to become available" for football's showcase event. Three still "have to be finished, including the one hosting the opener in Sao Paulo in about three months" (AP, 3/9). ... Bulgarian first division football club Botev Plovdiv "has unveiled a new set of plans for the building of the Hristo Botev stadium, where the club will play its home games." The stadium reconstruction "should be completed in 2015." The stadium "will be built to UEFA's Category 4 standards and will have 18,788 seats, 75% of which will be covered." The stadium "will have 600 parking spaces for cars" and seven spaces for coaches (INSIDE WORLD FOOTBALL, 3/7). ... London's Olympic Velodrome "opens for the first time since the London Paralympics when it hosts the fifth round of the Revolution Series next Friday and Saturday" (London GUARDIAN, 3/8).