A Fitting Farewell to Grêmio’s Olímpico Monumental
With the 2014 World Cup creeping up on us, Brazil is in the process of sweeping out the old and bringing in the new. This past weekend, one of South America’s most iconic stadiums, the Olímpico Monumental in Porto Alegre, held its last match for Grêmio since opening in 1954. The oh so modern Grêmio Arena looks as sleek as can be, but there’s nothing like the character that history gives to an old Brazilian place of worship.
Featuring Danrle and Jardel, (part of the Copa Libertadores-winning team in 1995) and Hugo de León (1983 Copa Libertadores and Intercontinental Cup winner), this video shows just what a special place the 45,000 seat Olímpico Monumental was, and why Grêmio fans won’t be forgetting it any time soon. [Posted by Eric]
#WhereIsFootball: The Cantagalo favela, Rio de Janeiro
“This past summer I spent a month in Rio de Janeiro participating in a study abroad program which focused on applied anthropology. Throughout those four weeks we visited a number of community centers located in various favelas throughout the city.
This particular photograph was taken in the Espaço Criança Esperança community center in the Cantagalo favela. This center provides kids in Cantagalo with a place to explore books, music, and art, as well as sports such as swimming, boxing, and futebol. Towards the end of our visit we stopped and watched these kids display some pretty impressive skills.
Unfortunately that’s the only photo I have, wish I had taken more. - Mary Allen”
Thanks for a healthy dose of perspective, Mary. I’m calling this the other, other side of 2014. These kids may not have much, they may be the ones the government is refusing to take care of ahead of the World Cup, but no one will be taking that ball away from their feet. In a poverty-stricken favela, this futsal court will try to support the dreams and the joy of the next Ronaldinho.
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And The Oscar Goes To…
By Gordon Fleetwood, writing from New York
On a Saturday night in Peru earlier this year, Brazil went to Arequipa’s Estadio Monumental de la UNSA needing a win to clinch the South American Youth Championship. Coincidentally, their opponents were Uruguay, the very team that they needed to overthrow. On that February day, Lucas Silva had the game of a lifetime. He bossed the game and scored a hat-trick to spearhead a comprehensive 6-0 win. Neymar went on to collect the awards for top scorer and player of the tournament, but there was certainly an argument to be made that the latter prize belonged to Lucas.
The demolition of Uruguay was the perfect end to what had been an incredible series of displays from the Säo Paulo midfielder. That night, another young attacking Brazilian midfielder had a front row seat to Lucas’ stellar show. Six months later, there was an eerie sense of déjà vu as Oscar went from being spectator into the role of main actor that he had seen Lucas execute with such aplomb.
Oscar’s hat-trick that broke Portuguese hearts and gave Brazil their fifth U20 World Cup title was certainly the cherry on top of a magnificent tournament for the upcoming star. Coming into the tournament there was some doubt that - after a less than stellar showing in qualifying - he wouldn‘t step into the leadership role left vacant by Neymar and Lucas, despite his obvious talent. This concern was soon put to rest as the Internacional midfielder quickly established himself as Brazil’s talisman, and carried this burden with ease as the team progressed.
Neymar Puts Paraguay To The Sword
By Gordon Fleetwood, writing from New York City
U20 South American Championships: Day 2
Before the tournament started, Neymar was tagged as the main attraction. Today, he showed why he deserves that label. The young star set alight a game which was almost devoid of creativity and attacking flair. In a performance that had the crowd cheering and clapping, Neymar put four goals past Paraguay to give Brazil a 4x2 win.
The first half was a generally cagey affair, as both sides struggled to find rhythm. Defenses ruled supreme for the first twenty minutes, as most attacks fizzling out in their infancy. Brazil dominated possession, but were under-performing in attack, with only the triple-marked Neymar looking dangerous.
O Brasileirão: The season so far and the run-in
By Gordon Fleetwood, writing from New York City
One of the most competitive leagues in the world is reaching yet another exciting conclusion this year. Everything is still up for grabs. Relegation, spots for continental competitions, and, most importantly, the small matter of the title are yet to be decided with seven rounds -or six, depending on who you are- to go. As per usual, the overlapping of the European transfer window with the regular season has a huge effect, with teams often losing their best players, and having to restructure mid-season. This season however, there has been the additional matter of the World Cup, which caused the league to go break for a couple of weeks. The result of that break has been a fixture congestion in recent weeks. The flood of games has seen the injuries pile up, further adding to the unpredictability. All of this is promising to provide drama to rival that of last season. With the end of the season fast approaching, here is a summary of what has happened so far in the top division, and a look to see what awaits in the little time that is left. Let’s delve into the chaotic beauty that is the Brazilian Serie A.
USA vs Brazil: Mano Menezes’ First Test
By Gordon Fleetwood, writing from New York City
Today Luis Antonio “Mano” Menezes starts his tenure as the new Brazilian National Team coach with a friendly at the New Meadowlands stadium against the United States. After the disappointment of this summer’s World Cup, Brazilian fans were looking for a major overall of the national team which Menezes duly provided. Only four players from the World Cup squad made the trip to the United States, with a host of fresh faces set to take the field in New Jersey.
AFR Scouting: Paulo Henrique Ganso
By Fernando Sell, writing from Juiz de Fora, Brazil
It is not the first time that Santos has a squad enriched by talented, skilled and home-grown players. In 2002 and 2004 the team won the league title with the influence, flair and magic of the world class Diego, Elano and Robinho. In 2010, once more Santos has a young and ambitious team boosted by their talented produced players. Neymar, André and Arouca are some of their promising stars but the one who has been stealing the limelight is the creative midfielder known as Paulo Henrique “Ganso”.
The ambitious, creative midfielder joined Santos in 2005 from Paysandu after being spotted by Santos legend Giovanni. After two years of hard work, Ganso started shining whilst carrying a 6 month injury; he was a key component in the victory of the Under-20 São Paulo State Championship. Paulo Henrique was born Ananindeua, Northern Brazil and earned the nickname “Ganso”which means Goose because of his tall height and slim body structure.
The winning design for the FIFA World Cup Brazil 2014 logo is entitled “Inspiration”, and was chosen from among 25 entries submitted to a judging panel that included Brazilian author Paulo Coelho and super model Gisele Bundchen. The Brazilian agency that created this is ironically named Africa. Now I thought the 2010 World Cup had the best logo ever, but this is beautiful as well. What do make of it?
