CUIABA, Brazil (AP) — Pedestrians tiptoe across a road scarred with deep puddles, piles of gravel and a detour sign. Black oily slush leaves no room for missteps or steering mistakes.

The debris in this small city in western Brazil is part of the grand-scale mess of unfulfilled promises. Unfinished infrastructure projects were supposed to create a new metropolis, with modern roads and a light-rail system to whiz passengers to the city center from a gleaming 21st century airport in time for this year’s World Cup. From the look of things, they won’t be done in Cuiaba — or in the country’s other 11 host cities, where many construction plans are hopelessly behind schedule, or have been canceled.