SAO PAULO:  Brazil are to play their final home game of the 2018 World Cup qualifiers in Sao Paulo, the Brazilian Football Confederation said on Wednesday, meaning the famous Maracana stadium will have not hosted a single match in the campaign. The October 10 game against Chile was expected to take place at the iconic venue that hosted the final match of the 1950 and 2014 World Cups. Yet Rio de Janeiro is in the midst of a crippling economic and public security crisis and the Maracana has been the subject of legal fights over who has the right to manage it. The ground lay abandoned for months after the 2016 Olympics and has been used sparingly by Rio's soccer clubs this season. Brazil, who have already qualified for the 2018 tournament in Russia, try to play their home qualifiers in different cities so fans across the nation can see them. The final Chile game will now be played at Palmeiras' Allianz Parque, meaning Sao Paulo will have hosted two games following the 3-0 win over Paraguay at the Corinthians arena in March. Brazil will play their penultimate home game against Ecuador at Porto Alegre's Gremio Arena in September.