Animal welfare campaigners Humane Society International has received reports of community dogs being "rounded up and removed" in the run-up to yesterday's World Cup opener.
The group fear that the canine clean-up could be a repeat of the organised extermination of thousands of dogs in Sochi during the Winter Olympics earlier this year.
Communications director at HSI, Wendy Higgins, is quoted by The Express as saying: "Killing dogs for a game of football is just unsporting and inhumane. We're very concerned for the welfare of Brazil's street dogs right now.
"We know that the local authority overseeing World Cup issues in Recife wants dogs removed from all the streets and beaches, but there is nowhere for these animals to go and so their fate is uncertain."
In the build-up to the Winter Games, up to 2,000 stray dogs were removed from the streets of Sochi.
