FIFA General Secretary Jerome Valcke has postponed a visit to 2014 World Cup host nation Brazil, scheduled for next week, football's world governing body confirmed in a statement on Friday.
Valcke's visit will be "rescheduled" for after a meeting between Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff and FIFA president Sepp Blatter, a date for which has not yet been agreed.
The General Secretary's decision comes after he overtly criticised Brazil's World Cup organisers for delays in stadium construction work, as well as in work to improve infastructure in the country ahead of the tournament.
"The incident is now closed," Brazil's sports minister Aldo Rebelo said on Friday.
On Thursday, Valcke apologised after suggesting that organisers needed a "kick up the backside," comments to which Rebelo had responded by saying Valcke would no longer be welcome as a FIFA spokesman.
However, legendary Brazil striker Ronaldo - a high-profile member of the organising committee - admitted that Valcke was right to speak out about the delays in a week which saw a FIFA team inspect the planned venue in Porto Alegre.
Work at the stadium in the southern city has been stopped for the last eight months but inspectors at the site were told that renovation would restart next week.
Source: AFP
