Brazil's closest matches

By J.P., R.L.W. and D.H.

Which countries match the GDP and population of Brazil's states?

AS FOOTBALLERS and fans descend on Brazil for the World Cup kick-off on June 12th in São Paulo, they will find themselves in not one country but many. As our interactive map shows, Brazilian states' economies, population and GDP per person vary wildly. The biggest state, São Paulo, has the population of Argentina and an economy the size of Turkey's. At the other end of the scale, Roraima has barely more people than Malta and the economic output of Mauritania.

When Brazil last hosted the World Cup in 1950 half of its states were more destitute than present-day India. The poorest, Piauí and Maranhão, are now more like Jordan. But that is still a long way from the wealthiest state, around the capital, Brasília, which enjoys an Italian standard of living. For more on Brazilian states' GDP per person, see article.