1/8Excited fans gather in front of the stadium days before the World Cup events begin, June 10, 2014. (VOA/Nicholas Pinault)
2/8Just 48 hours before the World Cup begins, the stadium in San Paulo is still being constructed, June 10, 2014. (VOA/Nicholas Pinault)
3/8Workers make a final push to complete sections of the stadium just days before World Cup events start, June 10, 2014. (VOA/Nicholas Pinault)
4/8Safety concerns have been raised because the partially completed stadium has not been tested at full capacity by the World Cup organizers, Sao Paulo, June 10, 2014.(VOA/Nicholas Pinault)
5/8Workers frantically try to finish sections of the stadium although the roof construction may not be completed until after the competition ends, Sao Paulo, June 10, 2014. (VOA/Nicholas Pinault)
6/8Workers frantically try to finish sections of the stadium in time for the first World Cup events in less than two days, Sao Paulo, June 10, 2014. (VOA/Nicholas Pinault)
7/8The partially complete stadium seen here just days before World Cup events begin, June 10, 2014. (VOA/Nicholas Pinault)
8/8Workers race to complete the partially completed stadium just days before World Cup events start, June 10, 2014. (VOA/Nicholas Pinault)
Subway workers in the Brazilian city of Sao Paulo voted late Monday to suspend their labor strike, which threatened transportation in the country's biggest city just days before it hosts the opening World Cup football (soccer) match, Thursday June 12.
ບຣາຊີລ ກຽມຕ້ອນຮັບ ເຕະບານໂລກ
1/8Commuters wait for the train at the Estacao da Se subway station in downtown Sao Paulo. Subway workers suspended a strike on Monday that crippled traffic in Brazil's largest city, but warned they could resume their walkout on Thursday, when Sao Paulo hosts the first game of the World Cup, June 10, 2014.
Excitement is building in World Cup host country Brazil despite a transit strike in Sao Paulo, the site of the opening match, and social discontent in parts of the country.
2/8Flip-flops printed with the national flags of soccer teams are sold in a sports shop, in Rio de Janeiro, June 10, 2014.
Excitement is building in World Cup host country Brazil despite a transit strike in Sao Paulo, the site of the opening match, and social discontent in parts of the country.
3/8In a beachside parking area, a van contains a stockpile of coconuts, in Recife, June 11, 2014.
Excitement is building in World Cup host country Brazil despite a transit strike in Sao Paulo, the site of the opening match, and social discontent in parts of the country.
4/8A building in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, June 11, 2014.
Excitement is building in World Cup host country Brazil despite a transit strike in Sao Paulo, the site of the opening match, and social discontent in parts of the country.
5/8Armed Brazilian soldiers are deployed to provide security at the Corinthians arena, Sao Paulo, June 11, 2014.
Excitement is building in World Cup host country Brazil despite a transit strike in Sao Paulo, the site of the opening match, and social discontent in parts of the country.
6/8Reginaldo, a Brazilian flag seller, waits for customers sitting in traffic just days before the 2014 World Cup events begin, Cuiaba, June 10, 2014.
Excitement is building in World Cup host country Brazil despite a transit strike in Sao Paulo, the site of the opening match, and social discontent in parts of the country.
7/8Germany's national soccer team members wave as they are transported to the sailing ship 'Pangaea' near Santo Andre village, near Porto Seguro, Brazil, June 10, 2014.
Excitement is building in World Cup host country Brazil despite a transit strike in Sao Paulo, the site of the opening match, and social discontent in parts of the country.
8/8The Obelisk is lit up in the Brazilian team colors of yellow and green in Buenos Aires. On the eve of the opening of the World Cup in Rio de Janeiro, Christ the Redeemer will be lit up in the blue and white colors of the Argentine national team to show sportsmanship between the two nations, June 10, 2014.
Excitement is building in World Cup host country Brazil despite a transit strike in Sao Paulo, the site of the opening match, and social discontent in parts of the country.
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((SOUNDBITE IN PORTUGUESE: Altino de Melo Prazeres//Metro Workers Union President ))
"It was voted on at this moment that we return to work and that the strike is suspended and that we hold another assembly on the 11th. Maybe the strike will return on the 12th and this will depend on the readmission of the 42 workers who were fired.''
The union is demanding that 42 workers who were dismissed for joining the five-day labor protest be rehired before it makes a final decision on ending the walkout.
A Sao Paulo labor court ruled Sunday the strike is illegal and fined the workers' union $175,000 for the first four days of the strike. It said the fine would increase by $220,000 for each day the work stoppage continues.
A short while before the suspension announcement, a construction worker was killed in an accident at a Sao Paulo monorail construction site, as city officials and workers scrambled to complete the project before the opening of the 32-nation tournament. The line was to connect the airport to the city's metro but is behind schedule.
