FIFA General Secretary Jerome Valcke said Friday he will move to Brazil next year in order to monitor the preparations ahead of the 2014 World Cup, dpa reported.
The number 2 at the world football body said on a visit to Rio de Janeiro that he plans to move there in 2011 "to follow the work close at hand."
He was to remain in the city through the weekend, rather than returning to Zurich on Friday as planned. The Frenchman has been in Rio and Sao Paulo since Monday.
"Everything has been going very well so far," said Valcke, who has previously criticized delays in stadium construction in Brazil.
The 2014 World Cup will take place in 12 cities across Brazil.