Brazilian football looks like the next Premier League
Awash with money, the country’s teams are conquering South America
On November 30th 70,000 football fans piled into El Monumental stadium in Buenos Aires. They came to cheer on two Brazilian teams, Atlético Mineiro and Botafogo, in the final of the Copa Libertadores, South America’s premier football tournament. The match was ferocious. In the first minute Gregore da Silva, a Botafogo midfielder, got a red card for sticking his studs into an opponent’s face, leaving his team with ten men. Seconds before the end of extra time Botafogo’s Júnior Santos sliced through three Atlético players to whip the ball into the goal, sealing a 3-1 victory for his team.
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This article appeared in the The Americas section of the print edition under the headline “Moneyball”
From the December 7th 2024 edition
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