After Cuiabá's Word Cup matches are finished, the seating capacity will be reduced to 27,000 and the steel will be recycled.

The general-contractor joint venture comprising Santa Barbara Engenharia and Mendes Júnior is working with the design team and the owner, the state sports authority Agrecopa Mato Grosso, to meet LEED standards. In addition to the membrane sunscreen on the roof and the openings at the corners, "we're using solar panels and LED to cut down on energy," says João Paulo Curvo Borges, Agecopa manager. "We're collecting rainwater and treating it for re-use. We have a 25% goal for recycling construction materials."

The $179-million construction cost, backed by a government bank loan, includes post-World Cup demolition costs and will be repaid by an operating long-term concession, says Curvo Borges.

Financing for the World Cup and the Olympics have come under criticism. Romário de Souza Faria, who starred on Brazil's 1994 World Cup championship team and is now a politician in Brazil, called for more transparency during a congressional hearing in July. Romário (as he is commonly known) said World Cup and 2016 Olympic organizers have overspent and been secretive about disbursements.

Further, Romário contends there has never been a satisfactory accounting for the 2007 Pan American Games, which were held in Rio. In its successful bid, Rio promised a list of infrastructural and environmental improvements—light rail, new highways, a new metro, a cleanup of the redolent, polluted Guanabara Bay—but while millions of reais were spent, none of the promised improvements were made.

Organizers say this time, the result will be different.