Brazilians protest World Cup spending

RIO DE JANEIRO - More than 70 percent of Brazilians are unhappy with the state of the nation, and 61 percent believe it was a bad idea for Brazil to host this year's World Cup.

Those were the results of a poll released Tuesday by the US Pew Research Center under the headline "Brazilian Discontent Ahead of World Cup," according to local media reports.

The poll showed the percentage of Brazilians dissatisfied with the situation in Brazil rose 17 points compared to a previous poll carried out in June 2013, when that figure was 55 percent.

Only 26 percent of Brazilians said they were satisfied with the way things are in the country, while 34 percent said they believed the World Cup will help boost employment and the nation's economic growth.

In contrast, 39 percent of those surveyed said soccer's ultimate championship will damage the country's image abroad, while 35 percent said the event will improve the perception foreigners have of Brazil.

Some 85 percent of those surveyed identified inflation as the country's biggest challenge, followed by crime and health (83 percent) and political corruption (78 percent).

Those problems, according to the Pew center, were also the most cited in a 2010 poll.

A little more than half the respondents, 52 percent, believed President Dilma Rousseff has a positive influence on the country, substantially fewer than the 84 percent who in 2010 gave high marks to then president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

The survey queried 1,003 people across the country between April 10-30.