Soccerex says Rio state government to blame

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) Soccerex officials say the Rio de Janeiro state government cancelled the football convention over concerns that spending more public money on the event might trigger a public uproar.

The Rio state government made "false and misleading claims" about why the Nov. 30-Dec. 5 conference was cancelled, Soccerex said in a statement on Thursday. It has been held for the last three years in Rio.

Soccerex said the "chief concern cited to us ... was the political concern with regard to the social reaction" for the state government's support.

Brazil has endured widespread protests, beginning with the Confederations Cup five months ago, tied to the billions being spent on the World Cup and the 2016 Rio Olympics.

Soccerex said it had complied with all contract obligations.

"We wish to reiterate that the chief concern cited to us in this situation was the political concern with regard to the social reaction to the Rio Government's ongoing support for our event," Soccerex said.

The convention at Maracana Stadium was called off on Tuesday. The Rio state government declined to reply to questions submitted on Wednesday and Thursday by The Associated Press.

Although fears over security were first cited for the cancellation, most of the focus now centers around who has to pay for what and how much.

The "government of Rio de Janeiro (state) wrongly seeks to absolve itself of its responsibilities with respect to the funding of the event," Soccerex said.

Soccerex is relatively minor, but the cancellation is another blow to the image of Brazil and the World Cup.

Most Brazilians seem to support the World Cup, but prefer the billions spent on big sports events channeled into programs that help decrease Brazil's stark social inequality.