While the words "child prostitute" will, for many, recall the vision of a young Jodie Foster in her role as a 12-year-old prostitute in the film Taxi Driver, those nightmarish scenes are a reality for all too many young children in Brazil during the World Cup.

Foster's role as Iris depicted the story of a 12-year-old runaway in New York city, who was under the thumb of a pimp. The role was shocking for audience members, but that life was an unfortunate and horrific reality for many children.

Thirty years after Jodi's groundbreaking role, child sex-trafficking remains a worldwide crisis. And as exciting and unifying as the World Cup games in Brazil are, they have also brought to light some of the sickening truths about this global crisis.

In Brazil, child prostitutes as young as 11-years-old parade up and down the boulevard, looking for potential clients. Every child's story is different, but the result is always the same.

It isn't always clear how the pimps who run rampant through the cities are meeting these children, but whatever the scenario, the men who sell have taken them have taken them to the streets, where they are dressed to look the part of someone selling sex.

Often, they are given different drugs, and then the young girls are sent down onto the street tp earn their keep.

One sex worker in Brazil told UK's Channel 4, "10, 12, 13, 14, they'll take them at any age. They come and choose a child. A lot of them will go because of necessity. Because of drugs or because they are high. To earn money to survive."

Some young prostitutes are runaways, amd others have turned to the life out necessity to survive. In most cases, the young girls have histories of sexual abuse, and the scars of the abuse run deep.

In 2012, an estimated half million child prostitutes working in Brazil's cities. Brazilian caseworkers cite that this number runs high because Brazil has gained the reputation as a sex tourist spot. Sex tourism has grown in recent years, and is oft associated with third world countries who have less stringent sex laws than western countries.

With the recent influx of about 600,000 World Cup tourists, it is feasible to assume that the number of child prostitutes has increased to meet presumed tourist demand.

In order to combat the growing problem, Brazil set aside a $3.3 million budget to fund advertisements that inform travelers of the penalties for having sex with a minor. It seems a minute effort to face the problem when weighed against the billions spent on preparing for the World Cup, but perhaps it falls low on the priority list.

In one of the ad's meant to target the issue, former soccer star Gary Lineker says, "The Brazilian police will be proactive in catching and prosecuting any offenders involved, and the police in Britain, Europe, and North America will also arrest and prosecute any offenders when they arrive home."

It is a staunch reminder to obey the rules, but there is little word on the effectiveness of the campaign.

Ultimately, the biggest problem with child sex-trafficking is that there is a market for it. If consumers will pay high prices for child prostitutes, or will ellicit the services of child prostitutes at all, no matter the price, then the pimps and pushers of the world will provide their customers with children.

Hopefully the informative advertisements Brazil has released as a reminder of the darker side of the World Cup will protect a few of the children of the nation.