Brazil official admits to faulty cell phone service at World Cup stadiums | FOX Sports on MSN
Brazil's top communications official admits some soccer fans will not be able to access the Internet on their cell phones inside some World Cup stadiums.
Communications Minister Paulo Bernardo says there was no time to install the necessary equipment to boost data services in some of the 12 stadiums, including the one hosting the June 12 opener.
Bernardo told a congressional hearing Wednesday that it will also ''be very difficult to offer good-quality services'' at the Arena da Baixada in the southern city of Curitiba and at the Mineirao Stadium in central Belo Horizonte. The stadiums in Curitiba and Sao Paulo are yet to be completed.
Bernardo told Brazil's official news agency Agencia Brasil that fans will have to rely on 3G data coverage, which is already deficient across the country.
Problems persisted in last year's FIFA Confederations Cup tournament. FIFA Secretary General Jerome Valcke issued a blunt warning to Brazil World Cup organizers last week.
"We don't want Brazil to be remembered as the worst World Cup of all time because the journalists could not get their stories out to the rest of the world," Valcke said.