Porto Alegre could lose the Confederations Cup.
The mayor of the capital of Rio Grande do Sul, José Fortunati, admits delays in the construction of the Beira Rio stadium. Grêmio plans a meeting with FIFA in Rio de Janeiro to present its arena as an option.
Cassius Oliveira_247 - The situation in Porto Alegre regarding hosting the Confederations Cup is far from good. The capital of Rio Grande do Sul is at serious risk of not being able to host the tournament, which will be held in 2013 as a test for the World Cup, scheduled for the following year. The mayor of the capital of Rio Grande do Sul, José Fortunati (PDT-RS), admitted that there is a high chance that the city will not host the competition. The main problem is the delay in the works at the Beira-Rio stadium, all due to a deadlock in the contract between Internacional and the construction company Andrade Gutierrez, responsible for the renovation.
The mayor of Porto Alegre hopes the contract will be signed by October 20th so that construction can resume in time for the tournament. “I was more optimistic before. Failure to sign could take Porto Alegre out of the running. I hope that Inter resolves the issue by October 20th. With the document in hand, we will have a very significant advantage,” stated Fortunati in an interview with Rádio Gaúcha.
Fortunati also stated that the city of Porto Alegre had "lost points" with FIFA and reiterated that the capital of Rio Grande do Sul is no longer one of the five guaranteed host cities for the tournament. "Six months ago, Porto Alegre was one of the cities indicated by FIFA technicians to host the Confederations Cup. At this moment, we have lost points with FIFA," he admitted.
The Internacional football club announced a partnership with the construction company Gutierrez in May. Since then, the two parties have been discussing details of the contract. The initial forecast was that the works would be completed by the end of 2012, but some directors of the Rio Grande do Sul club are already admitting that this deadline could be extended to the beginning of 2013 – according to them, before the Confederations Cup. At the beginning of the month, Internacional contested six clauses of the contract made by its partner. Club lawyers removed these conditions and sent the contract back. Since then, Gutierrez has not responded. The construction company continues to review the documents.
Grêmio, Internacional's great rival, is building a new arena, and the press in Rio Grande do Sul reports that the club is sending a representative to Rio de Janeiro to update FIFA on the project, which is 35% complete, and on the stadium's new features: 4 more seats, including 2 VIP seats, vacuum drainage for the pitch (the same system used in the Beira-Rio renovation), a 69KW electrical substation for improved quality and safety, and a FIFA-standard training center. The purpose of the meeting is also to make the arena available before, during, and after the 2013 Confederations Cup, the 2014 World Cup, and the 2015 Copa América. However, the highest football authority confirms that the World Cup venue is Beira-Rio and rules out holding the test matches elsewhere.