A Football Report

Posted by Eric Beard

Billions of dollars surround the beautiful game and, like in any business, clubs strive to gain an advantage over their competitors. Some gain advantages through hard work and creativity. Others do so through unethical and even inhumane practices. Vasco da Gama sadly does not appear to be a club well-versed in ethics. The Rio de Janeiro-based club have been ordered by a judge in Brazil to suspend its activities at all youth facilities due to an investigation that found young footballers were living in “slave-like” conditions. SLAVE-LIKE CONDITIONS. FOR TEENAGERS.

To put it bluntly, Vasco da Gama have been trying to hide this camp for “enslaved” teenage footballers since one of their youth players, Wendel Venancio da Silva, died last year at the age of 14.

According to the AP:

Prosecutors found the boys were lodged in deplorable conditions and not fed enough as they were pushed through a grueling routine that left them with little time for school, said main prosecutor Clisanger Ferreira Goncalves in a statement.

In addition to denouncing the teenagers’ poor housing and nutrition and their strenuous schedule, prosecutors also charged the club with transporting the teenagers in an unsafe vehicle, failing to provide them with medical care, and exposing them to unsanitary facilities.

“The decision was made to safeguard the most fundamental rights of dozens of the teenagers, aged 13 through 17, who are being violently disrespected by the club,” the judge said. “The conditions these children are exposed to are slave-like.”

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By Fernando Sell

Brazil is a nation with a fierce and historic rivalry between clubs. However, the characteristics of the rivalries are different in comparison to European ones.

As Brazil is a huge country that is composed of many states, it is rare to see a heated rivalry between two teams from different states.

The most intense rivalries are those between clubs of the same state; this mainly happens in the states of Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. The rivalries are primarily stimulated through state championships, also through the league known as O Brasileirão and the Brazilian Cup. When two rival teams play against each other the match is known as a derby and teams can play against each other 6 or more times in one year.

Grêmio vs Internacional

Grêmio and Internacional are fierce rival clubs from Porto Alegre, the capital city of the state Rio Grande do Sul. The state is practically divided in half by the clubs, half the state is painted blue and the other red. The historic derby between the two sides is known as the Gre-Nal.

Many players have played against each in the Gre-Nal, but one of the greatest player vs player moments was between Ronaldinho (Grêmio) and Dunga (Internacional). In one of the derbies, Ronaldinho destroyed Dunga with his tricks and flicks, and the Brazilian superstar scored a beautiful chip in the game.

This particular state championship in which the two teams compete for is called “Campeonato Gaúcho.” In 2009 Internacional were the winners, with arch rivals Grêmio finishing in second. Inter have won the competition 39 times and Grêmio 35 times.

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