Minister demands changes and defends State intervention in football

Brazilian sports minister, Aldo Rebelo, classified this Thursday (10) the defeat 7-1 to the German squad in the World Cup semifinals as a "deep mark", demanded changes in Brazilian football structure and defended a State intervention so that this revolution actually happens.

"Brazilian football needs changes. The defeat to Germany exposes, evidences more this need", said the minister during a press conference organized by Fifa and COL (Local Organizer Committee) of the championship in Maracanã.

According to the minister, the magnitude of the threshing that took from Brazilian squads' hands the possibility of a sixth title at home was an accident, which wouldn't happen again if both teams faced off one more time, but that deserves to be analyzed for future health of national football.

"We need to examine the reason and the cause for this accident. It's a deep mark. The best reaction to that is examining the most long lasting causes for that disaster. We need to take lessons so that Brazil replaces the Seleção to the status it must have. Changes are needed".

Rebelo still defended that this revolution that the sport must suffer should have the government as centerpiece, making laws and pressure over sports chairpeople.

CBF's (Brazilian Confederation of Football), José Maria Marin, and the elected president of the federation, Marco Polo del Nero, still didn't publicly speak about the Brazilian elimination. The national squad's coach, LUiz Felipe Scolari, on the other hand, said "it wasn't a completely bad job".

According to Rebelo, the government doesn't intend to name toppers, but wants to have a more active role in CBF and other sports federations. "The State mustn't be excluded from the competence of caring for public interest inside the sport".

"Pelé Law took off the State any kind of attribution and intervention power. If it was on me, we wouldn't have taken completely from the State this attribution. If it is on me, part of this attribution must come back".

Fifa's regulation prohibits governments interferences over the national federations linked to the entity. The Nigerian federation, for example, was suspended on Wednesday (9) because the federal administration decreed that their federations summit would leave the organization after their fall in the last-16 of the World Cup.

Proposal

Among the state intervention possibilities on Brazilian football's course, the minister mentioned the Lei de Responsabilidade Fiscal do Esporte (sports fiscal responsibility law).

Deputy Otávio Leite's project proposes a refinement of the clubs debts in change for what Rebelo called "clubs modernization", such as relegation for those that don't deliver accountability of debts and sanctions for those that don't keep athletes' and employees' salaries regularly paid.

Rebelo also asked for a legislation that allows kids younger than 14 years to live in clubs training centres (which is forbidden nowadays) and the adoption of measures that diminish the flow of young Brazilian kids going to play abroad while they are still at the basis categories.

"We import workforce and export from Europe football services. It can't be this way. We export our aces, many of them still being formed. I got to know that part of our under-15 generation is already abroad. Our legislation eases that". 

Translated by Raquel Sodré