Brazil's Post-World Cup Tourism Push Calls for More of Everything

It’s hard to know whether to envy or sympathize with Brazil’s tourism minister, Vinícius Lages. While the summer’s World Cup brought more than 1 million foreign visitors and about $7.5 billion in revenue, it didn’t avert an economic slowdown or highlight much beyond soccer. With President Dilma Rousseff facing fierce competition from Marina Silva in October’s national elections, it’s not clear that Lages will get much chance to make his mark.

This hasn’t stopped him from crafting a plan to recast Brazil’s tourism brand. His goal isn’t just to play off the World Cup in building buzz for the Rio Olympics in 2016. Lages wants to develop everything from craft-beer tours in Belo Horizonte and foodie-oriented attractions near the Amazon to international student programs.