Brazil's Unique Situation

Brazil is looking forward to the 'kick-start' that the upcoming mega-events are expected to give to its economy and development. This will not come without a cost though, and large investments are being made into Brazil's infrastructure and stadia.

The map on the left shows the 12 different locations of the host cities for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Each stadium is supposed to host between 40,000-60,000 guests.

Rio de Janeiro will also serve as the site of the 2016 Summer Olympics.

The most recent mega-events hosted in Brazil include the 1950 World Cup, the 1963 Pan-American Games and the 2007 Pan-American Games. The 2007 games were hosted in Rio, and sold 1.3 million tickets. These games were intended to be used as propaganda to secure Brazil as the host of the upcoming World Cup and Olympics. The propaganda worked.

The two principle economic reasons for hosting mega-events are economic development and a positive image in the media. As a result of hosting a mega-event, Brazil will automatically be the center of international media attention. Through positive media coverage, Brazil has the potential to dramatically increase tourism revenues.

The public budget and tax dollars used for the 2007 games were justified to Brazilians by the potential long-term economic benefits. Audience Characteristics of the 2007 games were somewhat surprising. 55% of the attending audience was between the ages of 10 and 29. Of the overwhelmingly young audience, 50% of all attendees bought their tickets online. Only 20% of the audience was from Rio, and only 3.9% was foreign tourists. Considering the high numbers of tickets purchased electronically, it would be beneficial to provide as much information as possible online before the events.

The unique situation in Rio presents many security challenges. The rich and poor live literally side by side. In order to feel comfortable, the rich often exclude the poor or block them from interfering with their lives. The social exclusion has lead to prevalent discrimination against people living in a favela (slum). Favelas are inter-mixed geographically with prosperous neighborhoods and are historically controlled by drug dealers.

Favelas are a huge component of Brazil's pop culture and they are participating more and more in local commerce activities. Store owners and transportation workers in the favelas are taxed by unofficial 'leaders.' Tourism is starting to bring in new opportunities for the 'favelados' (residents of the favelas). Many tourists make it a priority to visit the infamous favelas, despite safety concerns.

Security Measures to Consider

1. Crowd Management-This force pays special attention to organization, offers service and assistance to audience members, constitutes a low-level of policing. In the past, crowd management officers were not dressed as typical police force members. They intentionally appeared less aggressive.
For the 2007 Gemes, a large portion of these positions were filled by volunteers. The volunteers handed out guides (stadium maps, public transport, etc.) and spoke over megaphones.

A security concern of this would be the credibility of volunteers as a security force, even
for low-level policing.

2. Hotel and Restaurant Security
3. Transportation Security

Social Issues brought on by hosting mega-events

1. Interference with Public Space
The proposed destruction of the Parque de Flamengo in Marina de Gloria for the 2007 Games is one of the most well-known interferences. A famous panarama of the city was to be destroyed. The project was susbended due to threats from society.

2.Property Issues
Many of the homes surrounding the stadium are to be expropriated to allow for stadium development. For those properties that aren't taken over, prices are expected to rise making them unaffordable for many. Residents will be going through a 'redistribution' of location.

3.Promises not kept
Two new subway lines were promised for the 2007 Games and they were never built. The public was also promised access to use the stadiums after the events, however they were rarely used after the event. Sports are considered a 'luxury good' and the demand for stadium use was very low.

The mega-events and new policies are often seen as being used for city marketing, not for actually solving daily social problems of urban life. Previous investments tended to go toward already socially privileged areas, and avoided the areas that need help the most. The social issues have the potential to cause an unsupportive Brazilian public and a negative reaction to the authoritarianism.

Sources:

"FIFA World Cup Brazil." Destination. http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/destination/cities/index.html

"Metamorphosis of Marginality in Rio." Perlman, Janice

“Pan-American Games in Rio in 2007.” Curi, Knijnik,
Mascarenhas. International Review for the Sociology of Sport.

"Predicting the Costs and Benefits of Major Sporting Events." Barday, Jonathon