There were no real surprises as Belo Horizonte, Brasilia, Cuiaba, Curitiba, Fortaleza, Manaus, Natal, Porto Alegre, Recife, Rio de Janeiro, Salvador and Sao Paulo were given the go-ahead to stage games in the tournament.
Seventeen cities had submitted bids and Belem, Campo Grande, Goiania, Rio Branco and Florianopolis were the five to miss out.
The selection covered all the main regions of Brazil and results in a tournament which will require plenty of long-distance travel for teams. The South American country is the fifth biggest in the world by geographical size.
... FIFA had originally wanted just 10 venues for the finals but were persuaded by the Brazilians to allow two extra ones.
FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke said there was an enormous amount of work to be done in the coming five years.
"There is not a single city ready to host a World Cup game today or even in six months time," said Valcke.
Source:
FIFA names venues for 2014 World Cup in Brazil
The Guardian
May 31, 2009
