Brasil Observer #12 - English Version

FREE ISSN 2055-4826LONDON EDITIONJUNE 5 – 18

LITTLE BRAZIL IN LONDONFind out where to celebrate the World Cup >> Página 15

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A SPECIAL EDITION OF REPORTS AT THIS HISTORIC MOMENT

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Seven years ago, when it was announ-ced that Brazil would host the 2014 World Cup, lots of feelings abounded, of course, countless more opinions have formed over the whole process until now, when we finally reach the crucial moment: yes, the World Cup is here.During this process, the catchphrase “Imagine the World Cup” has been po-pularised by social media to ask ques-tions about the event. Do you think Brazil is wrong to host the tournament? Do you think that foreign tourists will experience trouble in the country? Do you think Brazil is seen badly on the international scene? Imagine the World Cup and what everyone on the world will think about us!These feelings of self doubt and an-xiety perhaps stem from the Brazilian ‘Mongrel Complex’ – a phrase coined by the Brazilian writer Nelson Rodri-gues that perfectly exemplifies our ha-bit of thinking that everything we do is bad or inferior to what is done in the developed world. The World Cup has become a new source for concern.On social networks and in discussions on Brazil’s streets some have been pre-dicting that the country will be shamed during the World Cup. According to them, we are doomed to failure, these revealing statements show a lack of self-esteem but also perhaps, fear.Where, then, is that image of Brazil which had become the darling of the World? It is still there? It certainly seems less confident than a few years ago. We overcome the crises we face, but never fully recover from our his-torical traumas. We build monumental stadiums, but do not clean the sewage flowing in our alleys. We buy ultra--powerful military airplanes to protect our territory, but do not improve the degrading state of our prisons, we say we will keep tourists safe when the police show frequent violence and bru-tality to the poor and peripheral po-pulation. And so follows an extensive list, of contradictions that exist in the country including urban mobility, edu-cation, health etc.Amid this tangle of claims, people took to the streets in levels not seen since the early 1990s. And the football feeling, which is so strong in Bra-zil, lost meaning amidst the billions spent to host the World Cup in Bra-zil. The event that had been billed as the “World Cup of the World Cups” looked pretty meek.But now with days to go we cannot focus on the past. Whether you like it or not, we will welcome the world to an international party in Brazil. Who would want to threaten this now? Who

would benefit from that? Just now, when we are welcoming 600,000 fo-reign tourists who are expected to con-tribute R$ 25 billion to the economy?The Brasil Observer believes that the country is moving towards a social democracy. We are not naive enough to think that there are no serious pro-blems to be faced, nor that is going to change overnight. We have always been courageous and faithful to repor-ting the factual truth on issues like the finance for election campaigns, cor-ruption, social control of the media, the internet civil mark, the pitfalls of agribusiness, the period of military dic-tatorship, among other topics we deem relevant to the maturation of any na-tion that wants to be more fair and democratic. We also give special atten-tion to the ways that the country has walked towards the internationalisation of its interests, both financial and cul-tural, to become a major world player.Therefore, while maintaining this cri-tical point of view, we are can safely affirm that the World Cup will ha-ppen, despite all of those who shouted otherwise. Why would we not celebrate the World Cup? Do we not stop to celebrate Carnival every year in spite of our problems? Would the country be better without the World Cup? We believe not.In the following pages, you will find specially commissioned content for this historic moment in Brazil. Is our vision - from a global perspective, this inclu-des an interview with the director of King’s College, Anthony Pereira, who granted us an exclusive interview, to a national perspective from columnist Wagner Alcantara Aragon and also an exclusive interview with the Minister of Sport, Aldo Rebelo.For a glimpse into the murky politics of football, don’t miss our interview with FIFA’s number one enemy, the British journalist Andrew Jennings. Concluding the series about the 12 host cities of the World Cup, Nathá-lia Braga arrives at the opening stage for the tournament, the city of São Paulo. There is also analysis of the Brazil and England’s squad, including an interview Scolari gave to FIFA. We also have a surprise in the CONEC-TANDO project, which embarks on its first filmmaking adventure. And tips on where enjoy the World Cup in London in Brasil Observer Guide.Whether you’re passionate about foot-ball or a sporadic supporter, this edi-tion, like all our others was made for those who think globally and for those who loves Brazil. Enjoy reading and see you soon!

E D I T O R I A L

THERE WILL BE WORLD CUPBy Ana Toledo and Guilherme Reis

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WE ARE LIKELY TO SEE A VERY MIXED PICTURE

PHOTO:ASSEMBLEIA LEGISLATIVA DO ESTADO DE SÃO PAULO

Anthony Pereira during a speech in Sao Paulo

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Director of the Brazil Institute at King’s College, Anthony Pereira, speaks to Brasil Observer

about his perceptions on the World Cup host nation, from international interest to the demands of

the demonstrations on the streets last year

When chosen to host the World Cup, Brazil made a major commitment to the international community: it was time to show that the country had matured and was ready for greater responsibilities. The test of fire came two years later, in 2009, when the world was faced with one of the strongest financial crises since 1929. Brazilian economy responded well above expectations and even has grown in a recession scenario in the U.S. and Europe, distributing income and allowing a large rise to the middle class. It was enough for the country to reach unpre-cedented levels in the global perspective.Five years later, however, the reality

is different. On the eve of the much--anticipated World Cup in Brazil, the country is no longer the “darling” of in-ternational analysts. The population gives increasingly demonstrations of dissatis-faction and what was once to be a party, sometimes it seems to have become a heavy burden.To better understand how Brazil fits

into the global perception within the context of the World Cup, Brasil Ob-server spoke with the director of King’s Brazil Institute, Anthony Pereira:

Brazil has definitely entered on the map of the international interests in the se-cond half of the last decade. Which was the turning point for that? Has the World Cup helped?

A major turning point occurred in 2009, at the beginning of the global recession caused by the financial crisis. While the UK, the US and other major economies went through major downturns, the Bra-zilian economy recovered very quickly and actually grew in 2009. This was a reversal of the usual pattern that had prevailed up to that point, which was that Brazil got the flu when the rest of the world caught a cold – in other words, its downturns tended to be more severe than those in Europe and the US in the 1980s and 1990s.

The resilience of the Brazilian economy that everyone could see in 2009 showed how the country’s economic policies and political situation had matured and stabi-lized. This generated interest among inves-tors. Investor interest has not disappeared despite the fairly slow rate of growth of the Brazilian economy in the last three years. In the last few years Brazil has been one of the top five recipients of foreign direct investment in the world.

The World Cup has certainly increased global interest in Brazil. Part of this is in recognition of Brazil’s unique connection to the World Cup finals. Its national team has never been absent from the tournament sin-ce the first one in 1930. It is the only team to

win five times, and its leading players have inspired football fans around the world.

Part of the interest is economic as well. Investors are aware that Brazil has big plans to invest in infrastructure and the World Cup will draw attention to the country’s infrastructural deficiencies, whi-ch are an investment opportunity as well. The interest is also political; the protests of last year drew attention to how Brazilian citizens are unhappy about their public services and their government.

At the beginning, there was a kind of euphoria about Brazil, which now is seen with more scepticism. Why did it happen? Has the real difficulties of the country been understood?

I think that the perception of Brazil from abroad has always been somewhat superfi-cial. Brazil’s “rise” was oversold in 2009, and its “fall” is being exaggerated now. At least in the UK, there are not a lot of ties linking British people to Brazilians so the breadth and depth of information that seems to exist about former colonies such as the US, Canada, Australia, India, and other countries is not there in the case of Brazil. The fact is that even though Brazil is growing slowly, and has been experien-cing some political tension, it has a lot of important advantages in the economic, so-cial, and political realms, and its prospects look fairly good in relative terms.

Speaking about the World Cup, the Bra-zilian government is quite angry with the international media coverage, whi-ch is supposedly being very negative. How do evaluate the media coverage of Brazil’s World Cup in England?

The media in the UK (and elsewhere) li-kes to be negative about upcoming major sporting events. It sells more newspapers and attracts more listeners and viewers to raise the alarm about problems that might occur. If the alarms are not accurate no-body will remember them afterwards, and in the meantime, they make an interesting story. We saw the same thing before the World Cup in South Africa in 2010, the Commonwealth Games in India in 2010, and the Olympics in Britain in 2012.

I think the Brazilian government is being a little bit alarmist to the extent that some of its spokespeople suggest that there is some kind of international media conspi-racy against Brazil, to portray the World Cup negatively. I don’t think there is such a conspiracy. However, many of the me-dia outlets that are most influential in shaping public perception of Brazil – in the UK those are The Financial Times and The Economist – are biased against the Worker’s Party (PT) government. You

could see that in 2010, when both newspa-pers endorsed José Serra for the presidency and not Dilma Rousseff, who of course won the election. But you can see that bias in other ways in the reporting by these news-papers. So when the government complains of an anti-PT bias in the international (and Brazilian) media, I think it has a point. The best way for the government to respond, however, is simply to try to provide good quality information and hope for more ba-lanced reporting.

You have been in Brazil during the pro-tests last year. How do you evaluate the social effervescence the country is living today and the demands raised on the streets? Do you believe the anger against the World Cup is fair?

I do not see the protests of last June and July as anger against the World Cup. I think the protestors were expressing anger at a system in which the overspending on the stadiums for the World Cup was just one of many symptoms. A survey of thou-sands of protestors carried out in 8 cities on 20 June revealed that only 5% of them said they were against the World Cup. What many of them seemed to be saying was that if the stadiums had to be “FIFA standard”, why couldn’t the hospitals, the schools, public transportation, and public security also be FIFA standard? That’s sli-ghtly different from saying you don’t want the World Cup to take place in Brazil. It is saying that the government has to do a better job providing vital public services – it receives a lot of tax revenue, and wastes too much of that revenue in poorly-execu-ted projects and in corruption.

I believe that Brazil is experiencing ri-sing expectations on the part of a young generation that is not afraid to protest. This generation is also adept at using so-cial media, which drastically reduces the cost of organizing protest. Apart from a violent minority, most protestors seem to want better-quality public goods and res-pect for citizens’ rights, which is harder for the government to provide than private goods financed by the expansion of credit, social programmes, and rising wages. In the long run the protests might have a po-sitive impact on Brazilian democracy, but I think the demands expressed in them are too diffuse – and the leadership of the protests too inchoate - to have an imme-diate, short-term impact on the system.

There is another interesting aspect to the protests. Some people believe that Bra-zil won the World Cup five times because Brazilians have an innate talent for playing football. The Brazilian talent for dance and agile movement was translated, almost na-turally, into success on the pitch. I think we have to be sceptical of these kinds of es-

sentialist explanations. Another perspective is that the Brazilian state invested heavily in football, beginning in the 1930s, becau-se Brazil’s political leaders saw football as a useful expression of national identi-ty and prestige. This is the position of the historian Paulo Fontes, who has edited a new book called The Country of Football (Hurst, 2014). Seen this way, football is part of a long statist tradition in Brazilian social life. A good example of this is the way the dictatorship exploited the Brazilian team’s victory in the 1970 World Cup finals in Mexico, in order to associate the team’s success with its own authoritarian project of “security and development”. If you ac-cept this perspective, then perhaps some of the people who are protesting against the World Cup (although I think they are in a minority) may be doing so because they want to reject that tradition.

The Brazilian people are very concerned about the image of Brazil abroad. Many of them, indeed, want to see the country have a bad World Cup due to political preferences on the presidential elections in October. Which is the image of Brazil in a global perspective at the moment?

The image of Brazil is clearly changing. It went against the stereotype of dancing, football-mad, beach-going Brazilians to see demonstrations taking place during the Confederations Cup last year. If there are demonstrations during the World Cup, that will defy the stereotype once again. But I think the opposition to the Dilma Rousseff government knows that it has to be care-ful when it comes to wishing for the World Cup to go badly. Saying this publicly could backfire. People who do that could be seen as disloyal, even unpatriotic, and they are unlikely to say such things.

I don’t think the election will be grea-tly affected by what happens on the pitch. Fernando Henrique Cardoso failed to get his successor José Serra elected the last time Brazil won the World Cup in Japan in 2002, and Lula was re-elected in 2006 after the Brazilian team was knocked out in a quarter-final match in Germany in 2006. However, if something goes wrong with the organization of the World Cup, this could affect the re-election chances of President Dilma.

Nonetheless, if the Brazilian team plays well in the opening game against Croatia on 12 June, a lot of people will get swept up in the emotion that surrounds these sorts of games and momentum will build to support the team. Brazilians are critical of and dissatisfied with many aspects of their state and society, but they also – still – have a great passion for football. So we are likely to see a very interesting, mixed picture during the World Cup.

By Guilherme Reis


A WORLD CUP THE BRAZILIAN WAYThe final touches are being made to

stadiums, infrastructure and logistics re-quired to successfully host the 32 de-legations on Brazilian soil. Everything from the pitches, hotels, transportation systems and local police forces must be sufficiently prepared for 12 June, when Brazil and Croatia kick off the tourna-ment in in São Paulo. Of course, it is likely that some problems are subject to occur, but these are inevitable with any major event of this scale and breadth. In 2007, when FIFA announced Bra-

zil as the host country of the 2014 World Cup, many doubted the ability of the country to reach the so-called ‘FIFA standard’. For the sceptics, the idea of Brazil being home to well equipped are-nas, quality hotels to accommodate the most discerning of guests and modern, efficient airports was impossible.To some extent they have been proved

wrong. The 12 host cities now have new stadiums that are true monuments to the beautiful game. The country’s hospitality industry has also upped its game. International chains have expan-ded while traditional ones have improved their facilities. Despited the huge wave of protest that

took to the streets, last year’s Confe-derations Cup in Brazil was near per-fect. Stadiums were fully occupied with tickets selling out and there were no scenes of fights between fans. At least, nothing that has caused major damage.

HIGHS AND LOWSFor anyone who has been living in

Brazil over these past seven years, it’s easy to recall the highs and lows in the preparations for the event. With frequent delays, improvisations, last minute chan-ges and the failure to complete some major projects. Historically and cultu-rally, this has been the Brazilian way of doing things and in this respect, we have wasted a great opportunity to prove to the world and especially ourselves that the opposite is possible, it was just a matter of delivering everything to the schedule.Corinthians Arena, the stadium hosting

the opening ceremony and game (read more on pages 12 and 13), suffered from delays throughout its construction and even at the time of going to press, some details over it’s safety remain un-

confirmed. The road improvements in the outlying area of the arena are also incomplete.Even in Curitiba, city with a world-

-renowned reputation for exemplary plan-ning and organisation, failed to live up to expectations. The city’s new Arena da Baixada, which will host four matches, still requires work to complete the exter-nal facade. Delays incurred at the start of this year have affected the schedule, which have even threatened to see the city dropped as a host city, although there have been assurances that it will be ready for its first game on 16 June.The original request from FIFA was

for that all stadiums should be comple-ted six months in advance of the start of the competition. This target was repe-atedly missed, with Pantanal and Dunas Arenas, also still undergoing adjustments. Others including the National Stadium in Brasília and Beira-Rio in Porto Alegre are having final interventions made to their external area.These delays, have been the main con-

tributing factor for the escalating requi-red to deliver the arenas. In 2010 the relevant parties signed the World Cup Responsibility document that listed the priority investments for the event the predicted spending of R$ 5.38 billion for

stadiums. Four years later, the real cost, which is still not completely finalised, is just over R$ 8 billion - an increase of 48%.The Sports Ministry, has argued that

the original estimates were flawed becau-se the initial values were only an esti-mate without a proper foundation, rather than a completed final budget. Of even greater concern than delays

have been the fatal accidents on sta-dium construction sites. Eight workers have died while working on World Cup arenas: three in São Paulo, three in Ma-naus, one in Brasilia and another one in Cuiabá.

The country of football has worked hard to get everything ready for this major sporting event and for good and ill, this has exposed historical characteristics and social tensions

By Wagner de Alcântara Aragão

PHOTO: AGÊNCIA BRASIL

Brazilians went from the euphoria to be chosen as host country for the World Cup to the aversion with “FIFA standard” spending, but gradually return to get excited about the event


Aldo Rebelo: Overall,

everything was very good

According to Aldo Rebelo, Brazil’s Minister of Sport, there is no bad feeling towards the World Cup, and despite the problems, preparations have been succes-sful. With just days to go before the big event, Brasil Observer spoke to Rebelo about the realisation and organisation of the World Cup in Brazil.

Could the World Cup in Brazil have been better organised?

In any activity, there is no single perfect result. Because of the size and importance of a World Cup event, the problems are nu-merous. But those involved in the work and organisation in overcoming obstacles and we will make this the ‘World Cup of World Cups’. The deadline for completion of some works could have been better adhered to but overall, everything was very good.

The bad feelings towards the event have grown over the last year. Do you think the-re will be protests during the World Cup?

There is no bad feeling against the World Cup. What has happened is that some peo-ple who are unhappy with the organisation of the tournament are demonstrating and demanding for improvements in public ser-

vices. They are using the visibility that any reference to the World Cup gains in order to express their opinions, unfortunately, sometimes violently and illegally. Once the ball is rolling, we will find ourselves in the party atmosphere that football creates in Brazil every week.

Besides the stadiums, what will be the legacy of the event?

Big sports events act as motivators for the participation of young people who dream to be athletes. In Brazil it this is already very strong with football. This sport will be further strengthened after the World Cup as our stadiums will be better able to receive international competitions. Greater numbers of the public will be able to go and see games. The government is also using the realisation of the World Cup and Olympics as an opportunity to improve our sports infrastructure. We are building five thousand sports courts and renovating another five thousand in public schools across the country. Local governments, will build 285 sport initiation centres in the underserved areas of numerous cities and we are improving the sports facilities of universities with new athletic fields and swimming pools.

CHANGE OF MOOD These delays and accelerating budget

reviews certainly contributed to the ove-rall change in mood towards the World Cup in Brazil. While back in 2007 the announcement of the country as hosts was reason to celebrate, last year the tide turned with the protests of June, showing another face of Brazil. For the most part, these protests have

been incited by Brazil’s economic elite, who are always willing to create instabi-lity and undermine any alternative that it sees as a threat to its privileges, even if it is for the benefit of most marginalised. The majority of the country’s most eco-nomically affluent population are using the World Cup as another means of attacking the Worker’s Party government, which it has long opposed for several reasons.Let me explain: since last year, the focus

changed to only report on the amount of money being spent. This outlook was crea-ted and perpetuated mainly by the oligopoly of Brazil’s media - which has been the main reason for historic ills of Brazilian society. The political-economic groups opposed to the government managed to imbue a sense of public opinion that the coming of the World Cup was an evil to Brazil. They polarised the event, claiming that all the re-sources focussed on hosting the World Cup would be drawn from health, education, pu-blic safety, as if the equation was simple.With public opinion poisoned against

it, the World Cup is about to start with the far less excitement for the event than seven years ago. As the date of the ope-ning game gets closer, the yellow-green is slowly taking over the streets but the unparalleled euphoria that was wished for now looks unlikely to be realised.

VIRTUAL VS REAL BRAZILThe image of the World Cup in Brazil

appears to be at its worst in the virtual world of the media and social networks than the real world of the streets. Recent viral demonstrations under the banner of “There Will Not Be a World Cup” have won fans.It is undeniable that in recent weeks a

series of strikes (mainly in transport sector) and social mobilisations (mostly of home-less people) have caused problems across the country make it seem that there is great disquiet amongst citizens. In fact, these movements have taken advantage of the visibility generated by the World Cup, in order to raise the profile of long standing issues in Brazil, rather than chanting with the choir of groups opposed to the Cup.With anticipation growing, there is

no doubt in regard to eh importance of the tournament to the country. These demonstrations will not deface one of Brazil’s feature: its warmth. This relates not only the organisation and preparation of major events, but also to the hospita-lity, and individual Brazilians. The government is already calling the

2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil the “World Cup of World Cups”. Let’s see if that will be true of if the tide will turn again.

WORLD CUP COSTS According to the federal govern-ment, the spending on stadiums and investments in transportation will reach about R$25 billion. Of this total, R$8 billion is fede-ral funding (through the National Bank for Economic and Social Development) for the renovation, expansion or construction of 12 arenas in each of the host cities. The remaining R$17 billion has been spent on public transport and urban mobility projects in the host cities.

WOLRD CUP INCOMEResearch made at the request of the Ministry of Tourism made predictions about the impact the event would have on the Bra-zilian economy. They reported that R$30 billion will be added to the country’s Gross Domestic Product, based upon the tourist sponging and as a result of in-vestments.

WORLD CUP LEGACYThe Brazilian government argues that the arenas are more than football stadiums and will beco-me spaces used for various other events. In addition, transportation and urban mobility infrastructure projects also become part of the event’s permanent legacy.

WORLD CUP Vs SOCIAL INVESTMENTSAmid questions about priorities for public investment, the Bra-zilian government has recently made the following comparison: since 2010, when they started the works for the World Cup, the federal government spent R$825 billion in education and health. This amount is therefore 100 ti-mes more than the money they provided to finance the construc-tion of arenas (R$8 billion). The government also argues that the BNDES funding was loan based and that it must be repaid by the companies and consortia res-ponsible for the arenas.

PHOTO: AGÊNCIA BRASIL


In his book, recently released

in Brazil, the British journalist Andrew Jennings

exposes the World Cup’s

ticket farce and argues Brazilians

are paying for something that will only bring profit for FIFA

and its sponsors

FIFA is again the target of Jennings’ investigations, which now focus on the distribution of tickets, a scheme that hides a world of dirty deals, growing black market and exchange of favours.“Getting a ticket to the World Cup

is like trying to win the lottery,” sums up the British journalist Andrew Jen-nings when talking about his new book, Um jogo cada vez mais sujo (Omertà: Sepp Blatter’s FIFA Organi-sed Crime Family).The reporter also looks at other il-

legal business that have enriched the pay packets of FIFA’s head honchos, including the Brazilians Ricardo Tei-xeira (former president of the Brazi-lian Confederation of Football and was on the Local Organising Committee) and Joao Havelange (former president of the CBF and FIFA).According to Jennings’ reports, the

Mexican brothers Jaime and Enrique Byrom (of Byrom PLC group), the majority owners of Match and Match Hospitality Services, who work with

FIFA have been up to no good. The Byrom’s control all business related to tickets, accommodation and hospitality for the World Cup. Quite a good monopoly on the event,

and there’s more, Jennings found that for the tournaments in Germany 2006 and South Africa 2010, Byrom provi-ded tickets for the FIFA vice-president Jack Warner to sell on the black ma-rket in exchange for votes that fa-voured them in the FIFA Executive Committee.

In the book you discuss the business between the Byrom brothers and FIFA vice president Jack Warner for the 2006 and 2010 World Cups. How do these business work?

There is a black world that football fans do not know about: the tickets bu-siness. There are 209 national football associations, like the CBF in Brazil that make up FIFA. Some are very honest, but most are not. National associations

ask Byrom for tickets, who are solely responsible for the provision of tickets on behalf of Blatter and FIFA. Tickets dealers from the black markets then ap-proach these associations in different countries from Africa, Asia and Europe to get these tickets and sell them on.

In Germany 2006, I revealed that Byrom were selling thousands of tickets to Jack Warner, who is now being forced out of FIFA. It was a great story, and they did it again in 2010! Warner, [pre-sident] of the Caribbean Football Union, requested tickets [by email], but copied in a dealer from Norway! Byrom then knew that Jack was buying it in the name of the guy in Norway and they copied FIFA into the correspondence, along with Infront, the company of Philippe Blatter [nephew of the FIFA’s president]. So everyone knew what was happening.

In Germany the likes of Warner made a lot of profit, but in South Africa this market collapsed because nobody wan-ted to go there. That’s why the Byroms lost their patience, contacting Warner

and his associates, demanding: “if you do not send the money soon, we will cancel your ticket.” Even though Byrom knew Warner was buying the tickets for the the black market they had to give him the tickets he requested because he controls at least three votes in the FIFA Executive Committee. In return Warner and his friends vote for Byrom so they retain all the contracts for the tickets. What we do not know is: what other Exe-cutive Committee members earn tickets on that scale?

FIFA says the system is legitimate and that the third party company Match has the exclusive control of ti-cket sales...

This is bullshit. Byrom control all ti-ckets. You access the FIFA website and find all sorts of rubbish about preven-ting unauthorised sales, which is ridi-culous, because every ticket comes via Byrom’s back door. FIFA says it is po-licing this parallel ticket marketplace,

By Giulia Afiune*


but it is not. It’s like a priest who looks the other way!

You also say that FIFA’s leaders are also making profits from this scheme...

We cannot prove that. I would grea-tly value the documents. I hear stories, I see how Jack Warner got away with requesting and selling on thousands and thousands of tickets. Do other leaders of FIFA do similar business? It is legitima-te to ask that question, but we have no proof yet.

What’s the best chance Brazilians have of seeing their team play?

Spend your money on a television. They do not put all the tickets in the lot-tery. You cannot believe the graphics, because there are no checks on them. You can check what the government is doing, but Byrom does not need to pu-blish their statistics. If they say they put 100% of their tickets in the lottery,

you’ll never be able to prove that this is true or not.

Are Teixeira and Havelange involved with this scheme?

We know that before Teixeira was pu-shed out, he was on the Local Organising Committee, which manages everything from tickets to stadium construction. I do not know what the slice of the pie Havelange still has, he is 96 years old. But Teixeira was there from the begin-ning, he prepared everything related to the World Cup.

We forced him to leave only throu-gh external scandals, he did not expect that. So you can put everything that’s wrong with the World Cup on him, because before he left, all these con-tracts were arranged. He says he had no control over what was happening. Oh, please...

What were these other scandals you discovered about Ricardo Teixeira?

I investigated him relating to bribes in Switzerland and reports by Álvaro Dias [from the Parliament Investigation of the CBF]. I read all 500,000 words. These Investigations prove that Teixeira is a great thief. It’s wrong to say that FIFA gave the World Cup to Brazil. Blat-ter gave the World Cup to Teixeira. The-se are different things.

FIFA is a mafia, a family of organised crime. In the book, I show it is not a legitimate organisation. The leaders are thieves, they share everything between them and it was time to give Teixeira his World Cup. The CBF was bankrupt and Teixeira was just the kind of man Blatter wanted.

Who will really profit from the World Cup?

You taxpayers pay for it. FIFA profit from the ticket office it is a great sour-ce of income. In other tournaments: women’s soccer, under 17s, and under 21s, they lose money, they only host them to show that they are inclusive.

Valcke says FIFA will earn US$ 2.7 billion from the World Cup in Brazil, when Brazilians get angry and he res-ponds: “But we’re putting as much mo-ney back in.” This is not true.

The sponsors such as McDonald’s, Visa, Samsung and others get a wonder-ful tax exemption of 12 months by “FIFA Law”. This exemption for them is a bur-den to you — if they are not paying taxes, you pay. They are robbing you!

We could have a world football cham-pionship without them. We do not need that level of non-transparent people just worrying about themselves and their bu-siness associates. You could legitimately do it, the income from the sale of tele-vision rights is sufficient to pay for the Cup. You do not need business behind the scenes with sponsors or special tax exemptions.

g This article was originally published by the Reporting and Investigative Journalism Public Agency: www.apublica.org

PHOTOS: DIVULGATION

New book by journalist Andrew Jennings investigating FIFA’s shady dealings was released in Brazil in May


Is Brazil ready to claim the title?

As far as our planning for the World Cup is concerned, Brazil is ready. Everything is organised, defined and on the right tra-ck. If we stick to this schedule, things are likely to go well for us.

The Brazilian public will see anything other than victory in the final as a failu-re. Do you agree with this?

I have a different perspective. I have had a lot of experience, and have been in a couple of situations where teams are ap-plauded by their fans even if they don’t be-come champions. Instead, it is much more a matter of the team’s performance. If you are a team like Brazil and you take part in a World Cup, everybody expects you to lift the trophy. We are certainly working to-wards that aim, but with a healthy respect for the other teams that will go into the competition with the same target in mind. Being at home in Brazil, we will use our quality to try and achieve our goal, and if we fall short, it will be because another team simply outplays us.

You have previous experience of leading a team on their own turf at a major competition after coaching Portugal at the 2004 European Championship. You were beaten by Greece in the final that year. What lessons have you learned?

It was a helpful experience; I now have a better idea of how we should behave going into a final, and how a team playing a final in its own country should organise itself and approach the match in order to lift the trophy. I know we can enjoy the experience of playing in front of home crowds, but at the same time we have to be aware that it will hurt more if we lose. I will be able to use that past experience when working with our players.

How do you assess the teams from Mexi-co, Cameroon and Croatia that you’ll be playing in the group stages?

Croatia plays good, technically sophisti-cated football. Their style of play is simi-lar to that of South American teams in that they are strong on the ball. The team no

longer plays in the more English style they once did; instead, they’re extremely techni-cally adept and play at a high level as a re-sult. Cameroon is a very technical African side. We have often expected certain thin-gs from them only for everything to turn out differently, or have expected nothing, only for the whole team to surprise us. In contrast, Mexico is one of our traditional opponents. They play high-quality football. There is a long history of matches between Brazil and Mexico, and they’re always tri-cky encounters.

Has the success of Spain and Barcelona forced the rest of the world to adapt to their short passing game?

I think the skills of those Barcelona players progressively complemented one another. Naturally, everyone is now analy-sing how and why that came to be, but this kind of football can only ever promise suc-cess for a limited time. Over the past few decades, there were times when everyone had to analyse the Italian brand of football in great detail, or the German way. There have always been different characteristics for each coach to observe closely and le-arn so that they can benefit from them.

You are the coach of one of these “tradi-tional” teams. How do you use this his-tory to motivate your players?

We make sure the players know what has been achieved and show them what they can do in their own careers with the natio-nal side. We make it clear that past Brazil teams won their trophies with commitment, spirit and class. And we give them the con-fidence they need to put their exceptional skills into practice on the pitch.

When you became world champion with Brazil in 2002, you had exceptio-nal players such as Cafu, Roberto Car-los, Rivaldo, Ronaldinho and Ronaldo at your disposal. Is this new generation as strong as the previous one?

It’s not just the talent you have to com-pare; the 2002 side had more experience. In contrast, the current team has a lot of enthusiasm and drive. Back then, the team’s experience was probably the deci-

ding factor, but who knows whether or not drive and enthusiasm will be more impor-tant this time around?

As the World Cup approaches, it conti-nues to be beset with organisational pro-blems. Do you let yourself be affected by this at all?

No, I am making sure we are not in-fluenced or affected by any of these cir-cumstances. Of cour-se, we’re affected as people, as citizens and as Brazilians, but we have to be able to detach ourselves from that and tell our players to do the same, so that they can draw a line under it and focus entirely on events on the football pitch. Everyone has their own opinion, but right now each player must concentrate and focus solely on the task they’ve been called up for. The players have reacted emotionally at times. We speak to them openly about it and they can air their opi-nions via social media, but we have rules within the team and we stick to them.

You were two years old the first time the World Cup was held in Brazil…

I can’t remember Brazil playing in the 1950 final, of course, but many people have bitter memories of our defeat to Uru-guay. I disagree about that; I think those players opened a door for us and put us on the road to winning five subsequent World Cups. That’s the perspective I pass on to our current players about their predeces-sors at the 1950 World Cup.

What will you be doing on 13 July at 4pm local time?

Okay, I know the final is scheduled for 13 July. Well, I’ll be on the sidelines pre-paring for the match. I will have sung the national anthem full of joy, fervour and vi-gour and hope the same will be true for my players and the Brazilian public.

The 2002 World Cup winner, Coach Luiz Felipe Scolari is Brazil’s great hope for this year’s competition and has assured that the ‘Seleção’ is ready to win its sixth trophy

By Bruno Sassi and Jonas Oliveira*

WE CAN ENJOY PLAYING AT HOME

PHOTO: RAFAEL RIBEIRO / CBF

g This article was originally published by The FIFA Weekly


By Antonio Veiga

It is a story that has been told hun-dreds of times. The last time Brazil hosted a World Cup they had safely got to the final and were winning 1-0 against Uruguay. Feeling secure the team was following the script so desired by fans and was edging to winning their first World Cup. Howe-ver, suddenly football presented one of its most cruel facets: the turnaround. Uruguay went on to win the game 2-1 and take home football’s most prized trophy in. After such a shocking de-feat, Moacyr Barbosa Nascimento, the Brazilian goalkeeper, was forced to carry the full weight of disappointment for the rest of his life.A lot has changed since that fateful day at the Maracana. Brazil went on to win five World Cups, the last co-ming in 2002. But those who cannot remember this win, only Brazil’s defeat to the Netherlands who also recovered from a 1-0 defect to win 2-1 and kno-ck Brazil out of the competition. This crowd will be pining a great deal of responsibility onto another goalkeeper - Júlio Cesar, the oldest player called upon by Coach Luiz Felipe Scolari.

Unlike Barbosa before him, Cesar will be looking for redemption in front of home fans.Both Brazil and it’s squad are comple-tely different from 64 years ago. The Brazilian team has the same responsi-bility to be champions, but carries di-fferent anxieties to 1950. But the need to live up to expectation and respond to the country’s effort to host the World Cup remains the same. For true success, Seleção also have to exorcise some demons.“It’s the opportunity of a redemption for something that has been stuck for 64 years. We expect to win and change this story. Ending this talk of ‘Maracanazzo’ [Maracana Blow],” said Carlos Alberto Parreira, who led the team in 1994 and is today part of Luiz Felipe Scolari’s commission.In an eerie test of fate, Brazil will have to a few of the teams they met in 1950. The Mexicans, who Brazil defeated 4-0 in 1950, are on their way once again. The two last met at the London Olympics in 2012, when Mexico beat Brazil in the final to take gold.In 1950 Brazil played Yugoslavia, this year it will be Croatia, considered the

strongest rivals in the first phase, fa-cing Brazil in the opening game on 12 June, at the Corinthians Arena in São Paulo.

SCOLARI’S FATHERLY APPROACH After the disappointment in the 2010 World Cup, Brazil’s squad went through a process of reformulation. Coach Dunga was replaced by Mano Menezes, was was responsible for developing the ba-ckbone of the current team building the defense and launching names like Oscar, Hulk, David Luiz, Luiz Gustavo and Fernandinho. After returning from Lon-don with only the silver medal, Mano was replaced by the man who comman-ded Brazil to their last world title, Luiz Felipe Scolari, the man who Brazilians trust and respect.The coach’s big daddy style is per-

fectly suited to the group of talen-ted young players. As Little boys in 2002, the players believe in Scolari’s speeches and have been strengthened by their success in the Confederations Cup, when they regained the respect of opponents.The Seleção are looking strong. It can easily be said that Daniel Alves, David Luiz, Thiago Silva and Marcelo form the best defensive line in the world. Good midfielders abound: Luiz Gus-tavo, Paulinho, Ramires, Fernandinho and Hernanes. Oscar and William both had exciting seasons at Chelsea. Hulk brings strength and tactical obedience. Fred is an effective striker. Bernard is the talisman. Missing someone? Ah, of course, the star of the company, a boy who was born with the mission to be the next Romário, Ronaldo, Pelé. Ney-mar inherited the shirt of the king and has shown that he wears it very well.Over the competition, there are pos-sible encounters with The Netherlan-ds or Spain, Uruguay or Italy in the quarterfinals and Germany in the semi--final. And probably only in the final will Brazil face their rivals Argentina at Maracanã Stadium, and hopefully rewrite history.

By Michael Landon

When England were drawn against Italy, Uruguay and Costa Rica for the World Cup group stage, the collective reaction of the nation was best summed up by the watching FA chairman Greg Dyke, who was caught on camera making a throat-slitting gesture.Dyke would later apologise for the mi-nor controversy this caused, but he, and certainly England manager Roy Hodgson who was with him at the time, would be under no illusions as to the scale of the task facing the Three Lions in such a tough first-round group. The draw formed the narrative in the media that, for once, England would ap-proach a major tournament with a sense of realism, and with expectations firmly in check. After all, the England squad was old and would have to rely on the same tired players. What’s more, at the time, Steven Gerrard was off-the--boil; Wayne Rooney deep in the mire of David Moyes’ disastrous season at Manchester United; and Frank Lampard wasn’t getting games at Chelsea.But that was six months ago. Like the

England team’s bad habits, the old hu-bris has slowly crept back. The outlook now is not so daunting. Rooney is fi-ring again. Lampard has been playing regularly. And Gerrard, with the aid of youngsters Raheem Sterling and Daniel Sturridge, ended up pushing Liverpool to within an inch of the title.And it is this mix of experience and youth that Hodgson is expecting to kick down doors in Brazil. Aside from Ster-ling and Sturridge, much stock has also been placed on Ross Barkley and Luke Shaw after both had breakout seasons. But if young players can inject boldness to England, they can equally supply im-petuosity.But it is uncertainty in the back line which is likely to be more concerning for Hodgson. There, only Gary Cahill seems a reliable option, with Chelsea team-mates John Terry and Ashley Cole now both retired from international duty.It will be interesting to see how this balance in the squad affects Hodgson’s approach to the tournament. Two years ago, England’s displays at the Euro 2012 finals under Hodgson were cautious and defensive. Having as he did at the time

the availability of a host of experien-ced defenders, this approach made sense. This time, England is much more front--loaded in attack and vulnerable at the back.Whatever strategy Hodgson employs, the man himself is now not short of confidence in the Three Lions’ chances. This story tells a familiar tale. ‘Yes, I believe the squad can win the World Cup, otherwise what’s the point?’ The 66-year-old told reporters. ‘We’re right to have some degree of optimism and to work on the basis there is a mood of optimism in the country’.So between quiet optimism and outri-ght pessimism, where do England’s chances really stand? The monotonous cliché would be to say somewhere in the middle. But that is not true in this case. History gives us a more accura-te expectation of their fortunes. And it has shown us that England flounder in humid conditions. That the Three Lions have performed poorly in the last five World Cups. And that Rooney has ne-ver performed in an international finals tournament. Expect an England exit at the group stages.

Brazil plays to rewrite history

Expect more of the same from

England


By Nathália Braga

The country’s biggest city perfectly reflects the ambiguity of the advanced and emerging Brazil, but it will certainly show visitors the cosmopolitan, multicultural and diverse spirit that makes ‘Sampa’ a place of love and hate

SÃO PAULO: WHERE THE GAMES BEGINThe biggest party in Brazil begins in

the biggest city. Known for its giant in population, traffic jams and love (or hate) of the city amongst Brazilians, Sao Paulo will host the first game and official ope-ning ceremony of the 2014 World Cup. São Paulo, or simply ‘Sampa’ as it

is affectionately known, will be in the spotlight when on 12 June, the world will stop to see the premiere of Brazil’s World Cup.Preparing for the big event has not

been easy: delays, fatal accidents, end-less bureaucracy and numerous protests from the local population who challenge the costs and legacy of the World Cup have created a whirlwind of controversy around the opening stage.For those headed to Sao Paulo, there

is no doubt they will have a packed schedule of activities. Tourists can ex-pect to find a welcoming, cosmopolitan city that operates 24 hours a day. They will also have the opportunity to vi-sit an area outside of the usual tourist centre, as Corinthians Arena, is to the east side of the State’s capital, in the neighbourhood of Itaquera, traditionally overlooked, but now firmly on the map.

THE CITY

With approximately 11 million inha-bitants, the city of São Paulo is spread across an area of just over 1.5 million square kilometres (about the same size of London). If you also consider the 38 municipalities that surround the capital in the metropolitan region, the popula-tion reaches approximately 19 million.The metropolis is known as a cultural

melting pot, home to thousands of peo-ple of Italian, Japanese, Portuguese des-cent and several other nationalities who now form Brazilian city with the greatest diversity of ethnic immigrants. Sampa is also a mosaic of Brazil, as it draws large swathes of people from all corners of the country seeking better work and study opportunities.São Paulo is the major economic centre

of Brazil, but there is much more to the city than finance. There are also parks such as Ibirapuera and Villa-Lobos, large shopping centres, museums and a multitu-de of restaurants and nightclubs - all day, anytime, there is something going on! The historic city centre is an attrac-

tion in itself. A visit to the ‘Banespa’ building, as it is known, provides tou-rists with a 360° view of the immense

state capital. Close by you will find the Sé Cathedral, the Municipal Market and Anhangabaú Valley, which will host the FIFA Fun Fest event on the Brazil’s match days.

CORINTHIANS ARENA

The most striking thing about the orga-nisation of the World Cup in São Paulo may have been controversies and delays in the work of Corinthians Arena. The stadium hosted its first match in early May as a partial test for part of the grandstand, which was deemed unsafe so another test was held on Sunday 1 June.Since the city was chosen to host ma-

tches for the World Cup, it was thought that the matches would be held at the Morumbi Stadium, which belongs to the São Paulo Football Club. The Corin-thians Arena, only emerged as an option after the proposal of reforms necessa-ry to meet FIFA standards at Morumbi were discarded.Construction started in May 2011 and

was scheduled for completion December 2013 however this deadline was repeate-

dly delayed by bureaucracy and serious accidents on site resulting in the deaths of three workers. The initial estimate of money invested

also escalated, like almost all the other the World Cup vernues. The original planned design required capital expen-ditures of R$ 850 million, however the final total cost is likely to exceed R$ 950 million. The private sector and the government have been responsible for paying these mounting costs, with the national bank BNDES financing R$ 400 million were. As hosts, Corinthians were awarded tax breaks, also of around R$ 400 million.The arena will host six games during

the tournament and has a capacity of just over 65,000. On June 12, Brazil and Croatia will kick off the compe-tition. On the 19 June, it will be the turn of England to face Uruguay. The stadium will also see The Netherlands play Chile (23 June) and South Ko-rea Vs Belgium (26 June). Corinthians Arena will also host two more games in July, including one of the semi fi-nals on 9 July.

PASSION FOR FOOTBALL

Match day is taken seriously in São Paulo. There are three main teams: São Paulo, Palmeiras and Corinthians - the latter have the largest fan base and now, its own stadium. Together, the teams have 15 titles in the Brazilian Cham-pionship. São Paulo and Corinthians also have good international records, with São Paulo winning the FIFA Club World Cup three times and Corinthians taking the same price on two occasions. Portuguesa and Juventus are two other

teams that make up the city’s vibrant football scene. Outside of the city but still within the state of São Paulo, San-tos, who first brought Neymar to the pitch, is also another great team and also a Club World Cup champion.The Pacaembu Stadium, which hosted

six World Cup matches when the country last hosted the event in 1950, houses the Museum of Football which is a must-see attraction for anyone who loves the sport. With such varied leisure and enter-

tainment options, the party in São Paulo looks set to be great!


POSITIVO: DEVELOPING ITAQUERA

A peripheral region of the city that has always lacked many improvements in ter-ms of urban mobility, Itaquera is appro-ximately 40 minutes from the central re-gion in the extreme east of the city.

Although away from the centre, about four million people live in the region and every day they face a marathon to get to their jobs. With the World Cup and the construction of the Corinthians Arena, the residents can hope for improvements in infrastructure and the move of a num-ber of large firms relocating to the area.

According to the municipal govern-ment, the World Cup will generate about R$ 30 billion to the city’s GDP over a period of ten years. They also hope that the east side of the city will be regenera-ted resulting in a growth in the provision of local jobs and mobility, with the arri-val of new trades and businesses. Already in the area around the arena, five major projects to improve the road network are being carried out.

After the World Cup, these works will be part of the legacy for the region with around R$ 550 million invested in such Infrastructure projects.

NEGATIVO: REAL ESTATE SPECULATION

While on the one hand, the rising va-lues of properties in Itaquera can contri-bute to the development of the region, on the other, there are growing arguments from various social movements over the lack of affordable housing in the area.

During the construction phase of Co-rinthians Arena, the Homeless Workers Movement (MTST, in Portuguese) occu-pied land near stadium. Their main claim related to the billions that was spent to host the World Cup while many problems of social inequality, such as homelessness remain widespread.

The camp was set up in early May on private land that had been unoccupied for nearly 30 years. The location is about 4 miles from the stadium. The operation was named People’s World Cup and also included protests blocking some avenues of the city. The MTST want the construc-tion of homes for low-income families on the site occupied.

According to MTST, many families present at the occupation used to rent accommodation in Itaquera and had to leave their homes due to rising prices. For them, the construction of the stadium brought a rise in property pricing that was greater than their monthly budget could afford.

Just a few days into the occupation, President Dilma Rousseff visited and talked to the leaders of MTST who clai-med to have signed an agreement to ex-propriate the land, a fact that was denied by the city mayor Fernando Haddad.

FOTOS: DIVULGAÇÃO

Arena Corinthians (1); Parque do Ibirapuera (2); Avenida Paulista (3); Praça da Sé (4)

AMAZONAS

PARÁ

AMAPÁ

ACRE

RONDÔNIA

RORAIMA

TOCANTINS

BAHIA

MINAS GERAIS

MATO GROSSO

MATO GROSSODO SUL

SÃO PAULO

PARANÁ

SANTA CATARINA

RIO GRANDEDO SUL

RIO DE JANEIRO

ESPÍRITO SANTO

SERGIPE

PERNAMBUCO

PARAÍBA

RIO GRANDEDO NORTE

PIAUÍ

MARANHÃO CEARÁAM

PA

AP

AC

RO

RR

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BA

MT

MS

SP

PR

SC

RS

RJ

ES

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SÃO PAULO - SPAltitude:792 meters Area:1.522,986 km²Population:11.244.369

CORINTHIANS ARENA Capacity:68,000 fansInvestiment:R$ 950 millions

INFOwww.cidadedesaopaulo.com

14 brasilobserver.co.uk

CONECTANDO

I could tell you things in any of these languages. But what will I tell you? Maybe I should start with a bit of my history with Brazil, a rela-tionship that began eight years ago and now reaches a cli-max as I am venturing around the country during the historic moment of World Cup. Or maybe I should say a lit-

tle about who I am? I like to think of myself as a Mexican with an adventurous spirit, with Brazil in my heart and Canadian in my head.Eight years ago I travelled

to study 3D animation in Van-couver. As a lover of cinema, I decided to pursue something I really wanted, something di-fferent and out of my country where I had lived the last 22 happy years of life. I found a good school and created the best opportunity to embark for the northern country. Over time I have made contact with new cultures, people and friendships. While studying I had friends from Morocco, France, Canada and suddenly, I met the Brazilians.These friends, who are part

of my “Brasilcanadense” fa-mily, won me little by little,

along with their great culture and joy. So, I began my tra-vels to Brazilian lands. I fell more deeply in love with the country, visiting five more ti-mes over the next seven years.Over time, this relationship

gained a meaning beyond the sentimental and turned into a bigger project: to be in the country for the 2014 World Cup. I have been returning to the country while working as a freelancer there and in Me-xico for three years. On every trip I tried to travel and ex-perience as much as I could, making many new friends.In Brazil I saw the oppor-

tunity to enter a contest in which the winner would go to Germany to record a short film with GoPro cameras in just one week. So I started writing, choosing songs and do all the technical stuff that involves the process of pre--production of any film. I talked about the idea with my friends who had worked in film production and soon I embarked to Rio de Janeiro.Once there, I met with my

friend and producer Thuany, who introduced me the group of actors “Nós do Morro”,

from the favela of Vidigal. We cast a selection of them, and filmed the action in a local grocery store, managing to re-cord all the scenes and in two days, a total of eight hours of work. I invite you to watch it here: http://goo.gl/QjVXVN. The realisation of this pro-

ject meant a lot to me, even more because I got to do it in Brazil. I felt so inspired by the experience that I also made a full documentary about the project: http://goo.gl/qo67jb. This year my adventure in

Brazil tells another story, sin-ce my friend, Guilherme, Bra-sil Observer editor asked me to share my story. The pro-posal came last month while we were having a few beers. Over the next month I will be shooting my experiences in Brazil during the World Cup, showing a Latin-American perspective on what happens and also what goes on away from the cameras of commer-cial television. It’s my pleasure to share

this adventure with you throu-gh the pages of Brasil Obser-ver and with exclusive videos on www.brasilobserver.co.uk. Let’s get started!

HOLA! HELLO! OLÁ!CONECTANDO embarks on its first filmmaking adventure to

follow the experiences of Miguel Nava Martínez, a Mexican who is in Brazil for the World Cup

By Miguel Martínez Nava

HOW TO PARTICIPATE?Conectando is a project developed by the Brasil Observer that aims to put into practice the concept of ‘glocal’ communication, helping a local story find a global audience of readers. You can be involved too, just send your story to us! Find out how to get involved by contacting [email protected].

Miguelito is ready for the World Cup

PHOTO: PERSONAL ARQUIVE


Brasil Observer

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Are you wondering how you’re going to be part of the Brazilian vibe in London during the World Cup? Brasil Observer has some tips on the best places to watch the games and where to enjoy the

green and yellow atmosphere >> Read on pages 16 and 17

Como curtir o clima brasileiro em Londres durante a Copa do Mundo? O Brasil Observer dá as melhores dicas de lugares para se divertir torcendo e assistindo aos jogos do Mundial na capital inglesa >> Leia nas páginas 16 e 17

Kick Off!


BRAZILIAN ATMOSPHERE SWEEPS ACROSS LONDON

FLORIPA

RICH MIX

THE CORONET

BRAZIL DAY

GUANABARA

MADE IN BRASIL

GRACE BAR

Located in the heart of East London, Flori-pa are bringing a carnival vibe to the city for the World Cup, with samba school dancers,

resident DJs, live music, food and Brazilian drinks. All of Brazil and England’s matches will be screened. http://goo.gl/HS3CMO.

With it’s special festival - Joga Bola! head to Rich Mix to see internationally renowned Brazilian label Mais Um Discos and London’s premier Latin music promo-ters Movimientos teaming up to present an eclectic line up of contemporary music.

There will also be a specially commissioned Brazilian street-art installation, independent film screenings, theatre and of course scre-enings of the games throughout this free summer festival during the World Cup from 12 June to 13 July. http://goo.gl/odmkG3.

Located in Elephant & Castle, the heart of London’s Latino community and with capacity for an audience of 1,500 peo-ple, The Coronet will open its doors two hours before the first match starts on on 12 June for audiences to watch capoeira

and samba while DJ’s play Brazilian mu-sic. All this and caipirinhas for £ 3.50, promise to make it a great party. Entry costs just £ 5 plus the voucher on page 22 of this edition gives you 50% off! http://goo.gl/Pfq3EN.

When the World Cup kicks off in Sao Paulo on 12 June in Sao Paulo a special event is taking place in Trafalgar Square. BRAZIL DAY is a free festival celebrating Brazil’s culture and passion for football. The event will include live music, DJs, dance lessons, capoeira and much more. It will climax with the powerful samba drums sy-nonymous with Rio’s carnival that will even have Admiral Nelson tapping his feet! The

celebration will not include a screening of the opening match between Brazil and Croa-tia, but a football zone will offer games and activities for all ages, including an inflata-ble football pitch and a photo booth with a life-size picture of the Brazilian national team. There’ll also be stalls selling typical Brazilian street-food and snacks, along with smoothies and soft drinks made from exotic Amazonian fruits. http://goo.gl/GKlLLE.

Guanabara promises to bring the atmos-phere of Copacabana beach to Covent Gar-den during the World Cup. The club will be screening every World Cup games and on match days for Brazil and England they’ll be creating the carnival spirit with live

Samba bands, capoeira performances and free style footballers. For the other matches they will be hosting London’s first ‘Silent’ World Cup - think Silent Disco but with Football. Tickets cost £5 - £10 and £17.50 for the final. http://goo.gl/bKpvDS.

In the centre of Camden, Made in Bra-zil are also getting into the spirit of the World Cup to bring a bit of Brazil to London. A diverse program of events

including School of Samba, capoeira and resident DJ’s will providing added enter-tainment on match days. Entry £5. http://goo.gl/rbiejB.

Watch all games on big screens in this 1000-capacity venue located one minute away from Piccadilly Circus. Open 7 days with football free-zones for those willing to have lunch or dinner in the Terrace Restaurant, let the hair down in Cocoa

Club with DJs, live entertainment, themed nights or follow the football action in Grace Bar with a very generous happy hour 4pm-8pm with up to 50% off drinks and drinks specials during Brazil matches. http://goo.gl/hTC7Bw.

The countdown to kick off has

entered its final stages for the

World Cup 2014. In London,

the flags of all countries playing

in Brazil have already made the pubs more

colourful. It’s hard not to get involved with international

football, it’s not just for only the

sport fanatics, but also those

occasional fans and a moment when everyone comes together

to celebrate football. To help

you plan your own footballing

party, Brasil Observer have

found the best tips and places where you can immerse

yourselves in Brazilian culture.


ATMOSFERA BRASILEIRA SE ESPALHA POR LONDRES

FLORIPA

RICH MIX

THE CORONET

BRAZIL DAY

GUANABARA

MADE IN BRASIL

GRACE BAR

No lado leste de Londres, o Floripa promete celebrar a Copa com as vibrações do carnaval, com passistas de escola de samba, DJs, mú-

sica ao vivo e comidas e bebidas brasileiras. Todos os jogos do Brasil e da Inglaterra serão exibidos. Info: http://goo.gl/HS3CMO.

Joga Bola! - Festival da Cultura brasileira promovido pela Mais um Discos, Movimien-tos e Rich Mix apresenta uma line-up eclética de música brasileira contemporânea como Gil-les Peterson, Tulipa Ruiz, Graveola e Maga B. Além disso, haverá instalações de Street

Art, exibição de filmes independentes, teatro e telões transmitindo os jogos da Copa do Mundo. O evento é gratuito com programação durante todo o período do Mundial, entre os dias 12 de junho a 13 de julho. Para mais informações acesse http://goo.gl/odmkG3.

A casa em Elephant & Castle, um dos principais centros da comunidade latina em Londres, tem capacidade para um pú-blico de 1500 pessoas. No dia 12 de junho, vai abrir as portas duas horas an-tes do jogo entre Brasil e Croácia come-

çar. Com capoeira, passistas de escola de samba, DJs e caipirinha a £ 3,50, a festa promete! A entrada custa £ 5 e, com o voucher da pagina 22, você tem 50% de desconto! Mais informações: http://goo.gl/Pfq3EN.

Como você já sabe, a Copa do Mun-do inicia dia 12 de junho. Para marcar essa festa, a Tafalgar Square vai sediar o Brazil Day, festival gratuito para celebrar a cultura brasileira. A programação in-clui música ao vivo, DJs, aula de dança,

capoeira e muito mais. Também haverá barracas com comidas típicas brasileiras. O evento não vai transmitir o jogo de abertura entre Brasil e Croácia e acontece de 12pm a 7pm. Mais informações acesse: http://goo.gl/GKlLLE.

O Guanabara promete trazer o clima da praia de Copacabana para Covent Garden durante a Copa do Mundo. A casa vai exi-bir todos os jogos do Brasil e da Inglaterra.

Tudo acompanhado de DJs, bandas e esco-las de samba que vão aquecer o clima da festa. Os tickets custam £5 e £10, e £17.50 para a final. Info: http://goo.gl/bKpvDS.

No coração de Camden Town, o Made in Brasil também entrou no clima da Copa do Mundo para oferecer um pouco do Brasil aqui em Londres. Com pro-

gramação diversificada, escola de samba, capoeira e DJs, não vão faltar atrações para animar as partidas. Entrada £5. Mais informações: http://goo.gl/rbiejB.

O Grace Bar, localizado a poucos minu-tos de Piccadilly Circus, com capacidade para 1000 pessoas, vai transmitir todos os jogos em telões. O local abre todos os dias, com locais para assistir aos jogos e, para quem quiser almoçar ou jantar,

o local conta com o Terrace Restaurant, com DJ’s, musica ao vivo e happy hour (4pm-8pm). Desconto especial durante as transmissões dos jogos do Brasil, com até 50% de desconto. Mais informações: http://goo.gl/hTC7Bw.

A contagem regressiva para a bola rolar nos estádios da Copa do Mundo de 2014 finalmente chega ao fim. E as bandeiras de todos os países que participam do Mundial no Brasil já deixam os pubs de Londres mais coloridos. O clima envolve não apenas os fanáticos pelo esporte, mas também aqueles torcedores esporádicos. O momento é de celebração do futebol. Para você entrar no clima e sentir-se parte dessa festa, o Brasil Observer preparou algumas dicas de locais que prometem trazer um pouco da atmosfera brasileira com programação diversificada para você torcer e celebrar a cultura brasileira.


GRINGO’S VIEW

THE HILL CAME DOWN O MORRO DESCEUPor Shaun Cumming

Estava andando pelas ruas do Rio de Janeiro. Do outro lado da avenida, a favela subia a en-costa de uma montanha muito íngreme. Decidi andar naquela direção. Nunca tinha visto uma favela antes. Era como olhar para outra civilização. Embora chocado com a pobreza, as construções eram impression-antes e bonitas. Sonhava acordado quando

uma bola de futebol quicou em minha frente. Rumo à favela havia um campo com traves de madeira. Meia-dúzia de crian-ças estavam jogando era delas aquela bola. O maior dos garotos correu

na minha direção. “Amigo”, ele disse, apontando para a bola. Peguei a bola e pulei o muro de dois metros que cercava o campo. Meu coração acelerou. O garoto mais alto voltou para a trave. Ele e as outras crian-ças buscavam as posições, clara-mente querendo que eu chutasse a bola. E foi o que eu fiz.Fiquei congelado observando

a cena. O garoto mais alto cor-reu de volta para mim, sorrindo. “Obrigado amigo”, disse ele. Ele tinha um cabelo afro preso para trás por uma bandana. Parecia ter 15 ou 16 anos. O resto pare-cia da mesma idade, mas eram de estatura menor.Ele olhou para mim com um

olhar curioso. “Você é grin-go?”, ele perguntou em inglês. Ele provavelmente percebeu a minha pele vermelha e a ig-norância de como me aproxi-mei do seu campo de futebol. “Sim”, eu respondi, agora su-ando mais do que o habitual. “Eu sou da Inglaterra”, falei. Eles pareciam confusos.“Nós jogamos futebol aqui.

Quer jogar também?”. Eu es-tava completamente chocado, mas aceitei jogar. Meus outros amigos brasileiros com certeza não aprovariam isso, eu pen-sei. Mas, com certeza, isso seria tranquilo - se quisessem me roubar, já teriam feito no momento em que toquei na bola a primeira vez.O garoto alto começou a ad-

ministrar a situação. Ele colo-

cou a mão no peito e disse: “Sou o Jorginho”. Eu disse o meu nome, mas, por mais que ele tenha tentado, foi inca-paz de sequer chegar perto de pronunciá-lo. “Ok, amigo, nós chamaremos você de gringo”.Passamos 10 minutos tocando

a bola ao redor do campo, que era seco, com poeira vermelha, duro e cheio de buracos. Eu fui superado pelas habilidades dos meninos. Eu jogava futebol desde muito novo, mas esses adolescentes tinham um talento natural para o futebol. O jogo foi disputado em

ritmo relâmpago. No ataque, eu simplesmente não podia acompanhar Jorginho e os outros, mas eles pareciam felizes com as minhas ha-bilidades de passar a bola. Jorginho era particularmente um excepcional jogador de futebol, marcando quatro gols impressionantes no processo.O calor era intenso, até mes-

mo para as crianças que de-veriam estar acostumada com isso. Após 40 minutos, mesmo com o campo na sombra, nós já estávamos encharcado de suor e com o placar com cinco gols para cada lado. Jorginho bateu no meu braço. Eu estava um pouco preocupado com o que pode acontecer a seguir. “Gringo, ótimo jogo. Eu preci-so perguntar uma coisa. Preciso aprender inglês para trabalhar na cidade. Eu quero trabalhar num hotel aqui no Rio de Ja-neiro – eles têm muitos gringos lá. Você pode me ensinar?”Isso soou uma fascinante

oportunidade. Aceitei. Demos um aperto de mãos. Os ga-rotos desapareceram do campo através de uma fileira de arbus-tos que levava até os prédios da favela. Voltei para casa.Em casa, fui para a cama

para uma soneca da tarde, pensando sobre a bizarra ex-periência de futebol com Jorginho e seus amigos da favela. O que era perigoso nestas crianças? Nada. A única coisa é que eles são mais po-bres do que eu. Fora isso, nós somos iguais. Na verdade, são superiores a mim em vários aspectos. São brasileiros.

By Shaun Cumming

I was walking through the streets of Rio de Janeiro. On the other side of the road, a favela climbed up the side of a very steep mountain. I decided to walk towards it. I was curious to pass right in front of the favela’s entrance. I’d never seen one before. It was like looking into another civilisation. While shocked at the poverty many live in, the buildings were also thorough-ly impressive and beautiful.I was daydreaming when a

football bounced on the pave-ment in front of me. Towards the favela, there was a flat, football pitch sized clearing. Half-a-dozen kids were play-ing and it was their ball.The tallest of the boys

ran towards me. “Amigo”, he said, pointing at the ball. I picked it up and jumped over the two-foot wall that bordered their pitch. My heart raced. The tall boy ran back to the goalposts. He and the other kids were all shuffling and pushing for position, clearly wanting me to kick the ball. I did.I stood frozen, surveying

the scene. The tallest kid jogged back towards me, smiling. “Obrigado amigo,” he said. He had a good head of bushy, afro hair, pinned back by a bandana. He looked around 15 or 16 years old. The rest looked around the same age.He looked at me with en-

quiring eyes. “You are grin-go?” he asked in English. He probably worked that out from my red skin, and ig-norance to have approached their football pitch. “Yes,” I replied, by now sweating more than usual, even consid-ering the blistering sunshine. “I am from England,” I said. They looked confused.“We play football here. You

like to play too?” he said. I was completely shocked, but agreed to play. My other Bra-zilian friends would certainly disapprove of this, I thought. The tall kid began to take

care of some administrat-ing. He put his hand on his chest. “I am Jorginho. It is my name,” he said. I told him my name. As much as he tried two or three times, he was unable to even come close to pronouncing it. “Ok, amigo, we call you gringo”.We spent 10 minutes pass-

ing the ball around on the surface of their pitch, which was dry, hard red dust, and littered with potholes. I was well outclassed by their skills. I’d played football since I was young, but these teenag-ers had a natural talent for tricks with a football.The game was played at

lightning pace. On the attack, I simply couldn’t keep up with Jorginho and the others, but they seemed happy with my passing skills. Jorginho was a particularly sensational football player, scoring four stunning goals in the process.The heat was debilitating,

even to these kids who should have been used to it. After 40 minutes, and even though the pitch was in shade, we col-lapsed in a ball of sweat at a score of five goals each side. Jorginho tapped my arm.

I was slightly worried about what might happen next. “Gringo. Great game. I need to ask something. I need to learn English to work in this city. I want work in a hotel here in Rio de Janeiro – they have a lot of gringos. Can you teach me?”This sounded like a fascinat-

ing opportunity. Again, I could see my other Brazilian friends disapproving. I agreed. We shook hands. The boys disap-peared off the pitch. I walked back home, exhausted.When at home, I went to

bed for an afternoon nap, thinking about the bizarre foot-ball experience with Jorginho and his friends. What was dangerous about these kids? Absolutely nothing. The only thing is they are poorer than I. Other than that, we are equals. If anything, they were superior to me in many ways. They are Brazilian

Este é um trecho do meu l ivro, The Hil l Came Down, no qual

Jorginho é o personagem principal. Para saber mais, visite www.

thebrazilblog.com ou fale comigo pelo twitter: @shaunalexc

This is an extract from my book, The Hil l Came Down, in which Jorginho is the main character. To f ind out more about the book, visit my www.thebrazilblog.com or chat to me on twitter: @shaunalexc

PHOTO: REPRODUCTION


B R A Z I L I A N G O V E R N M E N T

More than millions of kilowatts of power every year, Itaipu brings forth incredible emotions in thousands of tourists who come visit the largest generator of clean renewable energy on the planet. Itaipu’s attractions were the first in Brazil to get the ISO 9001 quality seal. Besides, the Special Tour, a trip through the core of the power plant, has been chosen by the Ministry of Tourism and Fundação Getulio Vargas one of the best tours in the country. Make sure you come see us. The Itaipu power awaits you.

[email protected]

Information and reservations:

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Itaipu. One of Brazil’s premier tourist attractions.

More than millions of kilowatts of power every year, Itaipu brings forth incredible emotions in thousands of tourists who come visit the largest generator of clean renewable energy on the planet. Itaipu’s attractions were the first in Brazil to get the ISO 9001 quality seal. Besides, the Special Tour, a trip through the core of the power plant, has been chosen by the Ministry of Tourism and Fundação Getulio Vargas one of the best tours in the country. Make sure you come see us. The Itaipu power awaits you.

[email protected]

Information and reservations:

+55 45 3529-2892

The spillway may be closed due to technical or weather conditions.

Itaipu. One of Brazil’s premier tourist attractions.


NINETEEN EIGHT-FOUR

A DIFFERENT WAY OF SEEING BRAZIL PARA INGLÊS VER E ENTENDERBy Ricardo Somera

The World Cup is coming (how many times do we have to write tFor years the world has been curious about Brazil. But many things unique to the country remain unexplored by the mainstream media. Taking this as a starting point, I am going to look at three host ci-ties where the England team are playing and tell you some things you might not know but which are important delineators of our culture. If you want to discuss these more or even share expe-riences of your travels during the World Cup, let’s chat on Twitter @souricardo.

AYAHUASCA IN MANAUS

Manaus, capital of Amazonas state, will host England’s debut match against Italy on 14 June. This region is known for its na-tural and cultural diversity, and one of the leading exponents of this culture is the ‘Santo Daime’ religious ritual that is based on ayahuasca - the sacramental use a drink with psychedelic charac-teristics.The ritual officially appeared

in the state of Acre in the early twentieth century. Ayahuasca is traditionally used in Peru, Ecua-dor, Colombia, Bolivia and Bra-zil by at least 72 different indi-genous tribes. Those who drink it say the experience takes you on a trip in the most intimate ways to reveal yourself. It is said to bring on visions, but it can also cause vomiting, diar-rhoea and psychological distress and is recommended to be taken only in the presence of a respec-ted shaman. www.visitamazonas.am.gov.br/site.

SAO PAULO RAILWAY

On 19 June the England team will face Uruguay in São Paulo. Little is said about it, but the largest city in Brazil was strongly influenced by the English, mainly through the São Paulo Railway Company, a private British com-pany who owned the first railway in the state, linking São Paulo and Jundiaí to the port of Santos.The company was nationalised

in 1946, but left one of the most beautiful buildings in São Paulo, Luz Station, was designed by the English architect Charles Henry Driver in the neoclassical style and inaugurated in 1901. Now a mu-seum of the Portuguese language this should be on the itinerary for any Brits headed to the city. www.museudalinguaportuguesa.org.br.

GOLD FROM MINAS

Belo Horizonte will host the match between England and Costa Rica on June 24. Rich in natural resources, the state of Minas Ge-rais was important in Brazil’s his-tory, but you night not know that it also played a part in Britain’s industrial development.As trade relations developed and

the Portuguese grew a fondness for fabrics weaved in Yorkshire, they didn’t pay for it with wine, but with gold from Brazil. This was reported by Eduardo Galeano in his seminal work The Open Veins of Latin America. Our colonisers took over 500 tons of gold from Minas and a good portion of that amount helped fund the industrial revolution in the UK. Nowadays the gold nuggets that the tourists will be able to get their hands on is Pão de Queijo - delicious cheese breads typical of this region. www.minasgerais.com.br/visite-minas.

By Ricardo Somera

Há anos o mundo está curioso sobre o Brasil. Certos temas, po-rém, são pouco explorados pela grande mídia. Por isso, tendo como ponto de partida as cidades que receberão os ingleses na primeira fase da Copa do Mundo, escrevo um pouco sobre três desses tópicos que são importantes delineadores de nossa cultura, dentro e fora do Brasil. Se você quiser debater mais, vamos pelo Twitter: @souricardo.

AYAHUASCA EM MANAUS

A cidade de Manaus, capital do Estado do Amazonas, vai receber a estreia da Inglaterra no dia 14 de junho, contra a Itália. A região Amazônica é conhecida mundial-mente pela sua diversidade natu-ral e cultural, e uma dos princi-pais expoentes dessa cultura é o Santo Daime, ritual religioso que tem como base o uso sacramental de uma bebida com características psicodélicas, a ayahuasca.

O ritual surgiu oficialmente no Estado do Acre no início do sécu-lo XX, mas há outras vertentes. A ayahuasca é utilizada tradicional-mente em países como Peru, Equa-dor, Colômbia, Bolívia e Brasil por pelo menos 72 diferentes tribos in-dígenas. Quem prova diz fazer uma viagem para os caminhos mais ínti-mos e reveladores de si. A planta é regulamentada para rituais religio-sos sem fins lucrativos, então não há motivos para visitar a Amazônia sem fazer essa descoberta. Descu-bra-se na floresta www.visitamazo-nas.am.gov.br/site.

SÃO PAULO RAILWAY

Dia 19 de junho os ingleses vão enfrentar o Uruguai na Arena Co-

rinthians, em São Paulo. Pouco se fala a respeito, mas a maior cida-de do país recebeu forte influência inglesa, principalmente através da São Paulo Railway Company, empresa privada britânica dona da primeira estrada de ferro do Estado, que ligava as cidades de Jundiaí e São Paulo ao porto de Santos, no litoral paulista.

A empresa foi nacionalizada em 1946, mas deixou um dos mais bo-nitos cartões postais de São Paulo, a Estação da Luz, que foi proje-tada pelo arquiteto inglês Charles Henry Driver em estilo neoclássi-co e inaugurada em 1901. O local é indispensável no roteiro turístico pela capital paulista, ainda mais por ter em seu prédio o Museu da Língua Portuguesa: www.museu-dalinguaportuguesa.org.br.

OURO DE MINAS

Belo Horizonte receberá no dia 24 de junho o jogo entre Inglaterra e Costa Rica. Além do rico futebol jogado por lá – basicamente por Cruzeiro e Atlético-MG –, outras riquezas daquela região do país foram corresponsáveis pelo desen-volvimento industrial da Inglaterra.

Não era com vinho que Portugal pagava pelos tecidos ingleses, mas com ouro, com o ouro do Brasil, relatou Eduardo Galeano no clás-sico “As Veias Abertas da América Latina”. De Minas Gerais nossos colonizadores tiraram mais de 500 toneladas de ouro e boa parte des-se montante ajudou a financiar o desenvolvimento da era industrial no Reino Unido. Hoje em dia o “ouro” que os gringos vão poder ver e provar na cidade é o pão de queijo, não tão valorizado como o metal, mas de valor inestimável para todo o brasileiro. Para co-nhecer mais Minas Gerais: www.minasgerais.com.br/visite-minas.

PHOTO: DIVULGATION

The impressive Luz Station in São Paulo



NEW CANVAS OVER OLD

MATCHING FOOD WITH FOOTBALLBy Kate Rintoul

In the three years I have been with my boyfriend I have proba-bly watched more football than some people see in a lifetime. Our weekends in London were always bookended with Football Focus and Match of the Day on TV. Lu-ckily for us, I like football.That being said I do have my

limits, especially when we someti-mes have to plan our social lives around big games. But rather than begrudging the occasional football focussed Saturday, I decided to embrace them. As well as resear-ching the best places in London to watch football, I also found ways of making nights in front of the box more interesting - with food and drink themed to the game.My first dabble in the art of ma-

tching food with football was for the Champions League final betwe-en Chelsea and Bayern Munich in 2012. Although I was rooting for Chelsea, to try something new (and because my budget wasn’t up to ca-viar or whatever they eat in Chelsea) I cooked up a Bavarian feast. Not only was it fun sourcing the different ingredients - it opened up new pros-pects: I discovered a great German food stall (in Bromley of all places) and the joys of creamy, floral wheat beers, which have become a firm football favourite in our house.Feeling inspired, when the Euros

rolled around a few weeks later, I quickly set about choosing a ‘coun-try to cook’. I tried to pick ones that weren’t too familiar to keep trying new dishes and techniques and it really did bring an added element of fun to the tournament.So with the biggest World Cup

in years just weeks away, I have upped my game and I am challen-ging myself to cook different na-tional cuisines for every day of the competition and raise some money for a good cause along the way.So what was once a novel

way of trying new recipes and making football more interesting has now become a full-on chal-lenge as I will be raising money for the Action for Brazil’s Chil-dren Trust who support grass-roots community projects.Here are the rules of Coma

na Copa:1) For every day there are ma-

tches I will choose one or two countries and prepare food and drink that’s reflec-tive of their culture.

2) I will source recipes from in-dependent blogs to support other writers and gain a more insightful perspective from native cooks.

3) The food will be reflective of local home cooking. I am not going to set ridiculous tasks like the Courtesan au Chocolat when France play.

4) I will document the process, in-cluding the reactions of friends and family who try the food.

Football and good food are a pretty good match, both take a lit-tle bit of dedication but when thin-gs go well can deliver satisfying results so I’m going to make like Gordan Ramsay and start cooking my way through the cup!I will be asking for people to

sponsor me through Givey, visit https://www.givey.com/katerintoul to see how I’m doing and to donate - you never know there might be a dinner in it for you!

THE RECIPE IDEAS

Here’s some of the recipe ideas I ’ve had for the opening games, tweet me to tell me which one you think I should do @katerintoul #comedocopa

12 June: Brazil Vs Croatia (Classic Caiprinhas or stuffed Courgette in tomato sauce)

13 June: Spain Vs The Netherlands (Hake with Galician Ajada Sauce or Dutch Meatballs in Gravy)

brasilobserver.co.uk 25

COMBINANDO COMIDA COM FUTEBOL Por Kate Rintoul

Nesses três anos estou com meu namorado, provavelmente assisti a mais jogos de futebol do que al-gumas pessoas assistiram na vida toda. Nossos finais de semana em Londres eram sempre acompanha-dos de partidas na TV. Para nossa sorte, gosto de futebol.No começo tinha minhas dificul-

dades, especialmente quando preci-sávamos planejar nossa vida social em torno dos grandes jogos. Mas, em vez de odiar o futebol de sá-bado, eu decidi abraçá-lo. Além de pesquisar os melhores lugares em Londres para assistir ao futebol, também encontrei maneiras de fa-zer as noites em frente à televisão mais interessantes - com comidas e bebidas temáticas para os jogos.Minha primeira experiência na

arte de combinar comida com o futebol foi no final da Champions League entre Chelsea e Bayern Mu-nich, em 2012. Embora eu estivesse torcendo para o Chelsea, para tentar algo novo (e porque meu orçamento não dava para caviar ou o que co-mem em Chelsea) eu cozinhei um banquete da Baviera. Não apenas porque foi divertido procurar os diferentes ingredientes – isso abriu novas perspectivas: descobri uma excelente loja de culinária alemã e o me diverti com as cremosas cer-vejas de trigo florais. Sentindo-me inspirada, quando a

Eurocopa chegou algumas semanas mais tarde eu rapidamente defini a modalidade “um país para cozinhar”. Tentei pegar aqueles com os quais não tinha muita familiaridade para tentar novos pratos e técnicas que realmente trouxessem um elemento adicional de diversão para o torneio.

Então, com a maior das Copas do Mundo chegando, me desafiei a experimentar a culinária de dife-rentes nacionalidades durante todos os dias de competição e arrecadar fundos para uma boa causa.Assim, o que antes era uma di-

vertida maneira de experimentar novas receitas e tornar o futebol mais interessante se tornou em um desafio: agora eu estou arrecadan-do dinheiro para a ONG Action for Brazil’s Children Trust, que apoia projetos comunitários.Aqui vão as regras do Come

na Copa:1) Para todos os dias que tiver jo-

gos, vou escolher um ou dois países e preparar um prato e be-bida que reflitam a cultura deles.

2) Vou buscar diferentes receitas de blogs independentes para apoiar os blogueiros e ter uma perspec-tiva fiel dos cozinheiros nativos.

3) A comida vai refletir a culi-nária do cotidiano das casas. Eu não vou escolher Cour-tesan au Chocolat quando a França jogar.

4) Vou documentar o processo, incluindo a reação dos amigos e familiares que provarem a comida.

Futebol e boa comida fazem um jogo muito bom. Ambos exigem um pouco de dedicação, mas quan-do as coisas vão bem podem pro-duzir resultados satisfatórios, então eu vou fazer como Gordan Ramsay e começar a cozinhar do meu jeito nesta Copa!Pedirei para as pessoas patroci-

narem a ideia através do site Gi-vey; visite www.givey.com/katerin-toul para saber como estou fazendo e também como doar – você nunca sabe ganhar de jantar!

THE RECIPE IDEAS

14 June: England Vs Italy (Mini battered fish and chips or Courgette and spinach cake)

15 June: France Vs Honduras (Crispy cod with braised peas or Tapado Pescado)

16 June: Germany Vs Portugal (Düsseldorfer pork chops or chicken baked in wine and tomato)a

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Brasil Observer #12 - English Version