RIO DE JANEIRO, June 11. /ITAR-TASS/. Brazil is completely ready to host the 2014 FIFA World Cup scheduled for June 12 – July 13. President Dilma Rousseff stated this in her televised address to the nation.

The championship will take place in 12 different cities of Brazil.

“Brazil is ready for the start of the world tournament,” the Brazilian leader said. “Brazil is like Christ the Redeemer (the famous statue of Jesus Christ with outspread arms atop of the Corcovado Mountain in Rio de Janeiro. — ITAR-TASS) embraces with open arms and welcomes all the fans on its soil.”

The world championship turned to be a sort of an exam for Brazil to prove the efficiency of state institutions and the readiness to stage world class events at the most modern level. This was reflected in the address of the president, who compared the preparations for the World Cup to “a complicated match with the right for after extra time and the chance to reveal the winner in a penalty shootout”.

Dilma Rousseff recalled that airports, crossovers were built and restored, and urban traffic was upgraded in the country. “All this will remain after the world championship for the Brazilians,” she noted. The president emphatically denied the claims in oppositionist media and social networks, which accuse the government of financing the World Cup to the disadvantage of schools and hospitals. “Since 2010, when preparations of the sports arenas ahead of the World Cup started, 1.7 trillion reals ($770 billion) from the state budget were spent at all levels for the needs of education and public healthcare, while stadiums for the tournament built in 12 cities cost 8 billion reals ($3.6 billion), in particular, part of these funds were private investments,” the president emphasized. “Thus, the state allocated in public healthcare and education 212 times more than in football arenas,” Rousseff concluded.

She added: “In the starting (world football) tournament, the pessimists have already lost, and they were defeated by the never surrendering Brazililan people with its commitment and determination.”

However, the president assured her compatriots that “all the financial papers related to the preparations for the World Cup are currently being thoroughly checked by the state controlling authorities, and in case any violations are discovered, those responsible will be subject to the strictest penalty”.

“The Brazilian team is the only national squad in the world that took part in each and all football world cups,” Rousseff reminded. She noted that the country’s team “is representing all the Brazilians” and “stands above governments, political parties and group interests”.

The Russian national team is also a participant of the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Overnight to June 18 (Moscow time), the team will play a group match with South Korea’s squad in Cuiaba. June 22, Russian footballers will play against Belgium in Rio de Janeiro, and overnight to June 27 they will challenge the national team of Algeria.