Sports Minister: Brazil stadiums will be used after 2014 World Cup

Brazilian Sports Minister Aldo Rebelo has stressed that the new stadiums being built for the 2014 World Cup will continue to be used after the tournament.

Four of the 12 stadia being used for the competition are in areas with no traditional football club, and there have been concerns that they would become white elephants.

But Rebelo says that there is the possibility of using the facilities for a number of events and that they would continue to be popular venues.

"In Brazil there are many alternatives for these stadiums," Rebelo is quoted as saying by The Boston Herald. "You have museums, restaurants and cultural activities.

"People will go to these venues even if there are no football matches being played, and the great sports arena administrators are interested in these stadiums."

He also confirmed that the training centres for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro will be used for athletic and recreational activities after the completion of the Games.