Brazil tested as Fifa unveils Confed Cup cities

SAO PAULO (AP) - Doubts about whether Brazil would be able to get the venues for the Confederations Cup ready for next year will end on Thursday when Fifa announces the host cities.

It is the first big test of Brazil's capacity to prepare for the 2014 World Cup, and the decision will show if the country has met or fallen short of expectations.

Fifa initially announced six venues, but slow preparations in the north-eastern cities of Salvador and Recife prompted football's governing body to create backup match schedules with four and five venues in case the original plan fell through.

The cities had until this month to show improvement and convince Fifa ahead of its announcement of the final match schedule.