Workers were still finishing building a stadium wall, and ticket offices, turnstiles and gates were not working, said another paper, the Folha de Sao Paulo.

BBC: 'Problems' as Maracana stadium reopens in Rio

Folha de Sao Paulo, a newspaper that sometimes speaks for the city's industrialists, this week called for exchange controls which President Fernando Henrique Cardoso has firmly ruled out (as he once did devaluation).

ECONOMIST: Brazil

But in a statement quoted by the Folha de Sao Paulo, the Rio de Janeiro state government pointed out that this was a test event, using only 30% of the stadium's full capacity, and did not represent the full reopening.

BBC: 'Problems' as Maracana stadium reopens in Rio