Opinion – PVC: Owner of Crefisa regrets having lent money to Palmeiras

José Roberto Lamacchia is the owner of Crefisa and has decided that he will not lend another penny to Palmeiras. He has just renewed his sponsorship contract and will strictly comply with it.

But the loan, which reached R$ 170 million for player purchases, resulted in a R$ 30 million fine from the Federal Revenue and analyzes that there will be a conflict of interests when Leila Pereira becomes president of Palmeiras. This creates discontent in Lamacchia. “I regretted it,” he says.

There will be a conflict of interest, this column thinks. The owner of Crefisa disagrees. He guarantees that Leila will make the most transparent management that has ever been seen and does not believe that the relationship has been compromised, because the renewal of the sponsorship contract has already been signed.

Palmeiras still owes R$ 132 million to Crefisa (updated value, released by the club after the publication of this column) because of contributions to purchase players, previously registered as marketing properties, but transformed into loans after the Federal Revenue’s fine.

“It has always been a loan and what we pay in a year to Palmeiras can pay for everything”, says the owner of the company. “We have already invested more than R$1 billion in the club, including sponsorships and awards.”

This column will give credit to Lamacchia and Leila Pereira for understanding administration. Good luck.

The management of Brazilian clubs will produce other debates. América-MG, Botafogo and Cruzeiro are looking for partners in the international market. The miners have a pre-contract signed with US investors, a draft that takes into account risks, such as the one that affected Belenenses in Portugal.

“We studied the case very well”, says Marcos Sallum, former president and adviser of América.

Belenenses are in the fourth division, while Belenenses SAD compete in the Portuguese League. SAD stands for Sport Anonymous Society. The legal modality helped to improve Portuguese football, European champion in 2016. But the lack of attention allowed a dispute between the Lisbon club and the businessmen who joined Belenenses to create SAD.

The club, the 1946 national champion, needed a fresh start from district tournaments and is currently in the Fourth Division.

Meanwhile, Belenenses SAD remains in the elite, without being able to play in the Restelo stadium or use the shield of the traditional team in the Belém neighborhood, from where the caravels departed.

In Brazil, the SAF (Sociedade Anônima do Futebol) will be an achievement and can transform the Brazilian. But you must remember that there is no such thing as a miracle, let alone saints. Botafogo and Cruzeiro placed XP Investimentos on the market, looking for partners.

America already has its future partner, North American. If it were undisputed and powerful, it would buy a Premier League club. Instead, it looks for an average South American team. It could be good for America, as long as the contract is careful and detailed.

Portugal takes care of that.

In recent weeks, the approach of the American, John Textor, co-owner of Crystal Palace, in London, interested in buying Benfica and taking it to the New York Stock Exchange, has been discussed. “There is no second opportunity to make a good first impression,” wrote lawyer Luis Miguel Henrique, in the daily Record.

It dealt with the feeling of opportunism caused by the approach of Textor. Kia Joorabchian signed autographs at Pacaembu, two years before Corinthians dropped to Serie B.

“Attention! These cases may occur in Brazil with the new law”, warns Luis Miguel.

SAF has everything to revolutionize Brazilian football.

But there will be no miracles or miracle workers.