Rio's Maracana stadium suffers 'looting and destruction'

Authorities in Brazil have been urged to act promptly to end the degradation of Rio de Janeiro's iconic Maracana stadium.

Photos published by the Globo newspaper show the venue in a state of disrepair with a bare pitch, hundreds of broken seats, holes in ceilings and piles of unattended rubbish.

Local media reported on Tuesday that the stadium has been looted in the past week with thieves taking statues, televisions and fire extinguishers as officials bicker over who is responsible for paying for the venue's upkeep.

The president of Rio de Janeiro's state football federation, Rubens Lopes, called for an urgent meeting of government officials and the city's top clubs: Flamengo, Fluminense, Bogtafogo and Vasco da Gama to resolve the impasse.

"If there is no immediate intervention by the government to prevent the looting and destruction of the Maracana, perhaps there is no use for our meeting," Lopes said.

Rio's state government and the stadium's operator, Maracana SA, have claimed that the Rio 2016 organizing committee is responsible for covering the stadium's maintenance costs.

But Rio 2026 communications director Mario Andrada said Olympic organizers had met all of their responsibilities.

The Maracana's plight comes less than six months after the venue staged the opening and closing ceremonies of the Rio Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Originally built for the 1950 World Cup, the stadium was redeveloped for the 2014 FIFA World Cup at a cost of more than 500 million US dollars.

source: Xinhua