Brazil World Cup fever

The Northeast coast of Brazil has experienced massive exposure in the past 12 months and now excitement is being increased by the draw of the 2014 World Cup.

Having already been flagged up as a 'hotspot' for property investors there is even more interest thanks to the world of football, particularly in Natal which has one of Brazil's top five football stadiums and is the latest location for a David Beckham soccer academy.

Although the venues for the World Cup will not be announced until next year, and new stadiums will undoubtedly be built, speculation is rife that Natal will be one of them.

David Beckham is expected in Natal shortly as part of the advertising and promotion for the Brazilian World Cup which lends considerable weight to this probability. He has recently announced he will opening a new David Beckham coaching academy in the north of Brazil, so all this seems to tie in with the idea that Natal will be holding some of the key games in the tournament.

Natal's Estrela dos Reis Magos stadium (capacity 65,000 spectators) is one of the top five stadiums in Brazil, and you would expect it to be one of the stadiums that benefit from the $1.6 billion injection of cash being used to upgrade the existing stadiums in Brazil.

This, coupled with its new second airport under construction, means Natal is very easily accessed from all over Europe and makes it the obvious choice not only for property investors but also as an ideal venue for much of the event.

Once completed, the airport will give the area huge potential to become a massive player in the international tourist market. It is estimated that the airport will have the capacity to transport 40 million passengers a year by the year 2020, making it the largest airport in Latin America.

It is expected the airport will partially open and be able to accept air traffic by the end of 2010 with full and final completion expected by the end of 2011. The results of free-trade zone considerations and full funding reports for the airport will be announced in mid 2008.

If the free-trade zone is approved, it will lead to a significant rise in land and property prices in Natal especially in the area above the Potengi River where there are some amazing beaches, some of which are often voted amongst the top ten in the world.

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