While Laureus nor the Rio de Janeiro State Government would disclose the exact reason for the cancellation of the event, Rio newspaper O Globo hinted that financial problems lie behind the decision, claiming that Rio authorities owe Laureus $15 million (£9 million/€11 million) and have not yet made moves to settle the debt.

"Laureus and the state of Rio de Janeiro have agreed that the 2014 Laureus World Sports Awards will not be staged in Rio," read a statement from the London-based organisation.

"Laureus will announce its plans for this year's Laureus World Sports Awards shortly."

For their part, Rio authorities insisted the decision to cancel the ceremony, which also took place in the city last year, was reached "amicably", adding that it would pay what it owes to Laureus and suggesting that the organisation could have done more to ensure the event went ahead.

"The State Secretariat of Sports and Leisure recommended to the organisers of the awards ceremony that they use the incentive laws [tax breaks] to secure [financial] resources and make the event happen," the authorities said.

The Laureus World Sports Awards are seen as the premier sporting accolades in the world and last year's individual awards were picked up by sprinter Usain Bolt and heptathlete Jessica Ennis-Hill.

Back in November, another prestigious international sports gathering in Rio was cancelled when the plug was pulled on the Soccerex Global Convention and Rio blamed financial concerns then also, claiming that organisers were unable to raise the necessary funds needed to stage the event and instead wanted local authorities to foot the bill.

The Maracanã Stadium in Rio was due to host the Soccerex Global Convention which was also cancelled late last year ©AFP/Getty Images




















But Soccerex insisted the week-long event which was scheduled to take place at the iconic Maracanã Stadium was cancelled because the Rio State Government feared civil unrest due to the ongoing protests across Brazil.

The protests, which began during last year's FIFA Confederations Cup, were sparked by the rising cost and quality of public services in Brazil and have been compounded by the amount of money being spent on preparations for the 2014 FIFA World Cup and Rio 2016 Olympics and Paralympics.

Earlier this month, FIFA President Sepp Blatter accused Brazil of being the least prepared of any host nation in his time at the world governing body after six of the host nation's 12 stadiums failed to meet FIFA's December 31 completion deadline.

Meantime, concerns persist over Rio's preparedness to host the 2016 Games with International Olympic Committee (IOC) vice-president John Coates last year warned Rio 2016 organisers needed "a concerted effort" to ensure the delivery of a successful Games, while the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) revoked the accreditation of Rio's anti-doping laboratory, based at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, for what it called "repeated failures."

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