ZURICH: Jerome Valcke has changed the schedule for his last progress-chasing visit to Brazil three days after work was held up again by a workers’ dispute in Manaus.

Valcke, secretary-general of world federation FIFA, spends at least a week of every month in South America keeping a worried eye on the state of much-delayde preparations for the finals in June and July.

His latest trip, this week, was due to wind up in Manaus where work on the trouble-hit Arena Amazonas was halted last Thursday and the stadium entrances were blocked by workers from another site who are in dispute with the same construction company.

FIFA has said that “based on the latest construction report” the delegation led by Valcke and Sports Minister Aldo Rebelo will start in Sao Paulo, go on to Cuiaba and then visit Curitiba, preferred to Manaus.

The visit to Cuiaba takes in the formal delivery/opening ceremony of the Arena das Dunas in Natal, one of the 12 World Cup venues.

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