The Brazilian Subways Are Nightmare Fuel Just a Few Weeks Before World Cup

São Paulo’s transportation system is dangerously overcrowded, and the World Cup attendees haven’t even arrived yet. Can you imagine being in this crush? It makes Tokyo’s underground look nice and and quiet and pleasant.

It’s easy to be cynical. In the buildup to the World Cup, Brazil has dealt with infrastructure problems and of course those full-scale wars going on in the country’s favelas—who doesn’t like to step over a body or two on the way to the match?—but hey, at least 2018’s Cup in Russia will be better, right?

Ukraine’s ambassador to the European Union said on Wednesday that Russia should face EU financial sanctions and lose the right to host the 2018 soccer World Cup because of its annexation of the Crimea region.

2022 in Qatar, then?

Sepp Blatter, president of FIFA, the world governing body for soccer, generally throws mea culpas around like they were manhole covers. So it was stunning to hear him admit the awarding of the 2022 World Cup to Qatar was an error.

“Of course it was a mistake,” Blatter said on Swiss television. “You know, one makes a lot of mistakes in life.”

“FIFA: You know, one makes a lot of mistakes in life.”