It`s almost too
easy to pick on the CBF and the World Cup organizing committee, but they really
do deserve all of the opprobrium that we can shovel on them, so let`s get to
it.
Soccerex, the
global football business conference, was as depressing and vapid as usual. One
of the particular lowlights was the presentation offered by Ricardo Trade and
Bebeto. The former is the head of something at the CBF and the LOC and the
latter was a fine footballer in his day, but appears to be taking nips of
electric kool-aid between electroshock sessions. Bebeto said the following at
least half a dozen times, “when you`re a player, you have no idea what goes
into making a World Cup, but when you`re on this side of things, you realize it’s
a lot of work.” Genius! It`s probably better that Bebeto has completely ignored
his duties as a federal legislator to take up a position on the left shoulder
of whatever authority figure is strutting around.
The meat of the
LOC`s presentation looked like it had just crawled out of Graciliano Ramos` Vidas Secas. Don`t
bother asking for a copy because their public relations directive is to not give out any
information. However, once in awhile, if you go to enough of these
presentations, they let out something that might actually be true and I think I
discovered a piece of reality in Trade`s brutal, condescending powerpoint:
·
Total
investment in World Cup associated projects (including federal, state and city)-
R$112.8 billion.
·
Total
anticipated impact on Gross Domestic Production (PIB) – R$64.5 billion
You read correctly.
According to the figures presented by the 2014 Organizing Committee at the
world`s largest soccer business conference, for every R$1 invested in the World
Cup, the Brazilian public can expect a return of R$0.57. Brilliant! [ed: apparently inspired by the deputy, the author begun to repeat things]
It is also
important to point out (again) that the word sustainability is so hollow that
if you hold it to your ear you can hear Mother Nature crying a polluted river.
What no “sustainable” account of stadium construction or reform ever takes into
consideration is the amount of energy and resources that go into making a
monumental structure that will require even more energy to run. Does it really
matter that the stadium in Brasilia
Fuleco. That was
not the name that received the most votes on this website but it is now the
official name of the tatu-bola mascot of the World Cup. It is a mixture of “futebol”
and “ecologia”. What with its high use of chemical fertilizers for fields,
hundreds of thousands of kilometers of air travel, equipment manufactured in
slave-like conditions in East Asia, the consumption of tens of millions of cans
and bottles, vip travel in limousines and private jets, traffic jams for the
rest of time, the creative destruction of cities and stadiums and the immense stresses on sewage systems in
host cities it is very clear that football is an ecologically sensitive sport!
It all makes perfect sense. If they weren`t walking around with pockets stuffed
with public money, one would almost feel badly for the adults that have to
swallow this garbage as part of their jobs. According
to one report, upon hearing his name, the tatu-bola tried to commit
suicide. Where are the Brazilian Kevorkians to help him along?
Cafusa. This is
the name of the ball for the Confederations Cup. Confusa? Confucious? No, no,
that is the ball of the 2026 World Cup in China Brazil
 |
| In support of a Maracanã publico e popular |
Unlike his
former strike partner, Romàrio is on the CBF`s case and has just gathered
enough signatures to open
a Parliamentary Inquiry into the current and former leadership. The rot
runs deep at the CBF and opening the black box as the World Cup starts coming
into view is going to challenge FIFA`s newly re-proclaimed dedication to
transparency. Força aì
deputado!
The Maracanã is
ours! O Maraca è nosso! The Rio
de Janeiro State
Here`s Chico Buarque on the subject, with more to come soon:
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