How Brazil's most expensive World Cup stadium compares to Saudi's 'jewel in the desert'

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Saudi Arabia's sumptuous new King Abdullah Stadium has been dubbed the 'jewel in the desert', and for good reason.

The state-of-the-art venue, which was inaugurated on May 1, is part of the magnificent new sports complex located on the outskirts of Jeddah.

Built at a cost of $507million the 60,000 seater stadium will be home to Jeddah’s two Premier League clubs, Al-Ittihad FC and Al-Ahli SC.




As the Middle East rejoices over another architectural marvel on the other side of the world the the fallout continues over the ongoing delays in contruction of Brazil's World Cup stadiums.

The most controversial of those is the Mané Garrincha, situated in Brazil's capital Brasilia and now officially the world's second most expensive football venue ever built.

Only England's Wembley cost more than the $900million Mané Garrincha, completed at 201 per cent more than its original budget.

This makes it by far the most costly of this year's World Cup, and incredibly enough, 61 per cent more expensive than King Abdullah's 'jewel in the desert'.

The reality of the Brazil's 'white elephant' stadium, however, is far removed from Saudi's luxurious venue.



The spiraling costs of infrastructure and the stadiums at the behest of public amenities like schools and hospitals has driven thousands of Brazilians to the streets in protest.

The main issue revolves stems from the billions of taxpayers money being spent to host the quadrennial tournament, even though officials promised in a 2007 FIFA that all stadiums would be privately funded.

According to Brazilian website UOL, government auditors have recently calculated that it could take over a THOUSAND YEARS for the country's federal district to recover the amount of money spent on the construction of Mané Garrincha alone.

The auditors also believe this exorbitant sum is largely due to allegedly fraudulent billing and overpricing of materials, with the alleged corruption surrounding the event another bone of contention for protesters.

Critics have also questioned the legacy of Brasilia's new venue given that there are no major demands for local football matches in the cpaital, and the stadium will solely (or almost) depend on hosting concerts and cultural events.

In contrast, Saudi's King Abdullah Stadium was built in compliance with international FIFA standards, a hint of the Middle East country's interests in hosting future major international sports events.

Here's a closer comparison of the two stadiums as per their respective prospectus':

KING ABDULLAH STADIUM


Location: King Abdullah Sports City,Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
Capacity: 60,000
Cost: $507 million
Other facilities: Multi-sport hall, athletic field, mosque, 45,000 parking spaces, tennis courts, other football pitches and luxury suites for the royal family.
MANE GARRINCHA NATIONAL STADIUM


Location: Ayrton Senna Sports Complex, Brasilia, Brazil
Capacity: 68,009
Cost: $900million
Other facilities: Volleyball and basketball courts, two sports halls, waterspouts facilities, an autodrome and a drive-in cinema.

By Gabriela Purri R. Gomes | Yahoo Sports