Now the matches have been announced for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, tickets have been allocated and battle lines have been drawn, English guests are being invited to plan the trip of a lifetime to soak up the excitement of the thrilling event first hand.

With TAP Portugal offering flights from the UK, via Lisbon, to 12 destinations in Brazil, the airline not only offers a convenient gateway to the sporting spectacular for both ticket-holders or fans looking to merely soak up the atmosphere, but also the perfect opportunity to explore the greater areas of South America pre or post match.

England will first pull on their boots on June 14th 2014 against Italy in the group stage of the tournament, with Manaus taking centre stage as the backdrop. Manaus is one of the newest destinations to be added to TAP Portugal’s Brazilian network.

The city will play host to four World Cup games to be played in Arena Da Amazonia, a specially built stadium. Manaus is the capital city of the state of Amazonas and the gateway to experience the Amazon.

It is one of the fastest growing regions in Brazil with a population of 2.3 million people.

Alongside Belém, Manaus will be added to TAP’s schedule in June 2014.

These new services signal TAP’s first destinations in northern Brazil, widening its existing network in the South American country.

TAP now flies to 12 destinations in Brazil via Lisbon providing convenient links from UK to nine other World Cup stadium destinations including Rio de Janeiro, Salvador, Brasilia, Porto Alegre, Curitiba, Recife, and importantly Belo Horizonte and São Paulo where England play Costa Rica and Uruguay in their remaining group stage matches respectively.

The Belém, and Manaus service adds to TAP’s current flight offering of ten gateways in Brazil, taking the total number of weekly flights in operation to 82, and destinations include Fortaleza; Natal; Recife; Salvador; Brasília; Belo Horizonte; Rio de Janeiro; São Paulo; Campinas and Porto Alegre.

The new route will also further expand TAP’s existing global connections, via Lisbon, to 79 destinations in 34 countries worldwide including Africa and North and South America.