Why Brazilians No Longer Care About the National Team

By: Bruno Romani | May 18th, 2007

fans: national team for what?

Everyone knows that the national identity of Brazilians walks hand-to-hand with sports, especially football. In every part of the world, it is easy to spot Brazilians by the famous yellow jersey. The national football team was something that inhabited the collective imaginary, bringing together different classes and races, and diverting many social problems of the country.

Gradually, however, the national team is becoming a stranger to its fellow countrymen. People don’t recognize it as a representation of the national pride anymore. Some even despise it, hoping it will lose and choosing to support other national teams instead. This description no longer applies to those politicized and articulated intellectuals full of empty rhetoric, but more and more this is a process happening to the ordinary Brazilian fan.

There are many reasons to understand why many Brazilians behave the way they’re doing it. The national team lost its identity. It’s a stranger because it’s been estranged. With CBF’s poor efforts to keep not only the top stars, but even the decent talents in the country, the national team does not group anymore players from the main national clubs. Brazil is now a “Europe all-stars,” from leagues that just a few have interest, the patience and the resources to follow. Compare the starters in the line-up that lost against Italy in 1982 with the one that failed against France in 2006. The former had Sócrates from Corinthians, Zico from Flamengo, Éder from Atlético, Serginho from São Paulo and many others. Only Falcão played for Rome, but his image was very close linked to Internacional. The 2006 team was a mix of players representing Italian, Spanish, German and French clubs. Not hard to imagine which of the two the fans identified more with.

This is not to mention players who never had a career in Brazil and now started to pop-up, like the forward Afonso who has just been called, and I can’t even opinion about that because I’ve never heard about him. It becomes a team that causes no passion.

In fact, the appearance of unknown players is part of a process that the fans despise even more. The Brazilian national team, through CBF’s hand, has become a big place for business. Agents walk freely within CBF’s headquarters, even during the World Cup, making sure their players have good deals and at the same time turning every choice about the national team into a questionable one. For instance, why did Dunga call this week São Paulo’s defender Alex Silva, who is not the best defender even within his club? Why goalkeepers like Doni and Hélton have been called?

Since Nike, loaded with the image of a pure capitalistic American corporation, started to sponsor the national team, fans started to see it with doubtful eyes. Nike brings fears of manipulation for the sake of business, so why support a team that is object not subject? The fears are justified when fans see the stunning TV commercials with top-stars that show no efficiency in real situations. Or when the fans realize that Brazil, a five times World Champions, wears a jersey that looks exactly the same of all Nike sponsored countries. Where’s the individuality? Where’s the identity?

The business lately has been extended even to where the national team plays. In the past, friendly-games where used as political currency within Brazil, bringing the national team to cities or states friendly to CBF. That, at least, brought the national team closer to its fans, ensuring some identification. Now, Brazil always plays away from home, either against mediocre national sides in Asia or in some big European city against national teams that have no ties to the place of the game.

The location factor added to the questionable players makes even more explicit the commodity aura that the national team has gained. Take again the last call by Dunga as an example. Brazil is playing in England in the opening match of Wembley. Kaká and Ronaldinho asked not to be called for Copa América, but were called to this match. Is it a stretch to think that sponsors imposed that? What are the benefits of having two players who won’t be in Copa América playing the only friendly matches before the tournament? It doesn’t sound like a decision based on any sports criteria.

Now that I have mentioned the two biggest Brazilian players of the moment, how can the fans have any identification with the national team when the top-players follow orders of their European clubs and seem not to care about the national team, as if playing with the yellow jersey was just another step in their careers? Playing for Brazil should be THE step. In the recent past, Romário and Bebeto, for instance, played overseas, but were ready to fly to Brazil at any time even if they had to play mediocre friendly matches in some distant town. It is the first time Brazil has a tournament after the 06 fiasco and the two top-players decided to run. If they were from Argentina, I’m sure things would be very different.

Around the world the yellow jersey still is very respected and brings excitement to football fans. Except for Brazilians. To follow the national team has become a boring task. Now you know why I barely mention it in this blog. CBF sold for cheap a huge national wealth. The price paid was the fragmentation of national identity. The national team has become something to be seen by Europeans. It is no longer Brazilian.