Maracanã or Molineux?

Before coming to Brazil in February, I imagined Brazil as the spiritual home of football, where on every patch of grass or dirt people would be kicking about a ball, or substitute, and at weekends hordes of people would descend on full to bursting stadiums, all over the country to watch their stars perform. Such was the Brazilian passion for “o jogo bonito”.

However, the reality is quite different. Apart from the “grandes clasicos”, such as the state finals, international games and clashes between city rivals, the majority of games are played out in front of quarter-full stadiums or even less. For example, on a recent visit to Rio de Janeiro, I went to see Fluminense take on Americano in the Campeanato Carioca at the world famous Maracanã. This magnificent stadium was recently redeveloped for the 2007 Pan-American Games, making it into a 92 thousand all-seated sporting theatre, rivalling any of the great stadia across the globe. However, being there amongst a crowd of just over six thousand, on a rain soaked evening, watching Fluminense labour to defeat Americano, has to be amongst the least edifying sporting events I have witnessed. The seemingly never-ending stream of swear words that poured forth from one disgruntled fan could be heard by everyone, so lacking of atmosphere was “O Templo do Futebol”. A help to my grasping of Portuguese it may have been, but a hindrance to the spectacle it certainly was.

Admittedly, the attendance was far better later on in the week when I saw Flamengo- Brazil’s biggest club- play host to Nacional of Uruguay in the Copa Libertadores but even then the stadium was probably just over half-full. The same could not be said for the equivalent games in England.

In the English Premiership, on average 36 thousand people turn out every week to see their respective teams win, lose or draw. Indeed 12 out of the 20 grounds in the league are more than 90 percent full, making it the fourth best-supported league in the world. Even English football’s second tier, The Championship, has 17 thousand weekly devotees, only a little lower than Serie A in Italy. This from a country that has a population of 60 million, compared to the 186 million who reside in Brazil.

The other thing that has struck me about Brazilian attendances, and indeed South America in general, is that there is hardly any away support. There doesn’t seem to exist the culture of travelling to obscure parts of the country to cheer on your team, as there is in England. Anyone that has experienced the roar of the away fans celebrating a late goal that has made their journey worthwhile, knows how addictive “away days” can be. Obviously the sheer size of Brazil, the world’s fifth largest country, coupled with poor highways and a non-existent train system make life far more complicated, but even in the local state championships, away fans are few and far between.

It would, however, be a complete fallacy to say that football isn’t at the forefront of Brazilians’ minds. Step in to any taxi across Brazil and as a male foreigner, within seconds you’ll be asked “Cual é seu time?” and before long you’ll be discussing Brazilian players who are plying their trade in Europe and famous “jogadores” from the past. Mention the wrong local side and you’ll find yourself being taken the gringo route to your destination, watching the taximeter escalating.

And it’s not just the “taxistas” who love their football. Nearly everyone is a “torçedor” (supporter) of one side or another, as you can see by the number of people wearing replica shirts on the streets. But very few people are “fanaticos” who attend matches on a regular basis. Go to a “super clasico” and the passion and atmosphere is a sight to behold, whole sections of the ground bouncing up and down in unison, chanting their team on to victory. But they are the exceptions that prove the rule.

Television and newspapers are filled with football too. Two of the terrestrial free-to-air channels even broadcast the same game simultaneously such is the interest in the result. Players have microphones shoved in their faces as they walk off for the half-time interval or as they complete their last stretches before coming on as a substitute, such is the media attention. “O Fenômeno” Ronaldo’s recent indiscretions with three transvestites ensured that football dominated the front pages as well as the back even more so than usual.

There can be no doubting the interest in football, so why the poor attendances? A large factor in this has to be the costs of tickets. With prices ranging from 20 reais (US$12) to 150 reais (US$90) and with the minimum salary of 415 reais (US$250) per month, the average man cannot afford to go, or at least not on a regular basis. Also, if you’re a torçedor of one of the bigger sides (Flamengo, Corinthians, São Paulo, Vasco da Gama, Palmeiras etc.), a large number of the games are screened live.

But the same could be said of England, where tickets can cost as much as £71 (US$139) and where “Sky Sports” show up to six live games every weekend. Yet the attendances don’t seem to suffer there. Brazil seems to prefer following from a safe distance away, surrounded by the comforts of a local bar or the sofa.

So although the Brazilians clearly like their football, for true fanaticism England beats Brazil. Just a shame that isn’t true about events on the field too!