TV money, SAF and salaries could make Brazil the South American Premier League

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Minutes after being the protagonist of the Corinthians elimination in Libertadores in 2011, Colombian striker Wilder Medina was talking to Brazilian journalists at the hotel in Ibagué. He was wide-eyed when he heard the salaries paid in Brazilian football.

“Listen to this, love. Listen to this”, he said to the woman, who was beside him. She then asked reporters for help to get a team in Brazil.

Eleven years later, the Argentine narrator Miguel Simon, one of the most important in the country, announces on ESPN the transmission of the Brazilian Championship games by the media group and completes: “It’s the South American Premier League.”

The process of economic superiority of Brazilian football in South America is not new, but it has been accentuated. The values ​​of TV rights are higher, the salaries paid are higher and they attract players from other countries on the continent that do not go to Europe.

This Saturday (26), Palmeiras announced the renewal of coach Abel Ferreira until the end of 2024. He will receive about R$ 35 million per year. Unthinkable salary in other South American leagues.

“Brazil has a leadership role and should have the mission of spearheading the development of football in South America, otherwise they will continue to play finals between them”, diagnosed Uruguayan Diego Lugano, 2005 world champion for São Paulo, before the Libertadores final. 2021, between Palmeiras and Flamengo.

The decision was the second game of the continental title in a row played by teams from the country. The previous decision had been disputed between Santos and Palmeiras. In 2019, Flamengo defeated River Plate (ARG).

In the Copa Sudamericana, in 2021, the final was between Brazilians Athetico and Red Bull Bragantino.

It is an advantage felt especially in Argentina. Uruguay has not had a Libertadores champion team since 1988.

“The difference between the income of Brazilian and Argentine clubs has grown enormously in favor of national football, and with the eternal crisis that devastates the Argentine economy and that, even in the foreign exchange aspect, penalizes their clubs when they sell players abroad”, says lawyer Eduardo Carlezzo, specialized in sports law and who advises different teams.

The process of transforming clubs into corporations can deepen these differences even further.

“This should further increase the financial disparity. Within South America, Brazil is heading towards becoming what England is in Europe,” adds Carlezzo, in yet another comparison with the Premier League.

One of the big differences is in the television rights. The Brazilian elite teams receive more than the other countries on the continent. And if the idea of ​​internationalizing the tournament takes hold, this is another chasm that should get even wider. This could happen as a consequence of a new club league that can be created from 2025.

The contract for the domestic market of Series A distributes around R$ 600 million to the clubs in the open and closed TV system. It doesn’t come close to the Premier League’s R$8.4 billion, but it is more representative than the other agreements in South America.

The Argentines share around R$ 84 million per season. The Uruguayans, R$ 14 million. The Chilean league is the closest: R$ 362 million. But this one concentrates more money on the two teams with the biggest fans in the country: Colo-Colo and Universidad de Chile, which increases the financial disparity between the duo and the rest of the championship.

In Brazil, the payment system divides 40% equally among the 20 participants. The other 60% depend on criteria such as the number of matches broadcast and the final position in the championship. In pay-per-view, the division is different because it depends on a survey carried out by Grupo Globo with service subscribers.

The big step for Brazilian clubs may be to expand broadcasts to other continents.

“It is very clear that Brazil needs to stop being a country that exports players to be a country that exports its championship”, defines Pedro Mesquita, head of the Investment Bank at XP, which has a project for the formation of the league and is looking for investors .

For him, the way is for clubs to become companies and attract capital. A formula that other nations are resistant to.

In Argentina, several attempts to approve models for joint-stock companies in football failed due to resistance from managers and fans. At least in terms of finances, this could be an added advantage for Brazil.

One of the great enthusiasts of the project among the clubs in Buenos Aires was the then president of Boca Juniors, Mauricio Macri, who would later become president of the Republic. He believed he had convinced the then head of the AFA (Argentine Football Association), Julio Grondona, that the project was worthwhile.

Grondona agreed and, in his own way, worked against backstage conversations with top hats from the other teams. At the time of voting, only Macri and Grondona himself declared themselves in favor. The result was a rout.

“Mauricio, we lost,” don Julio said to Macri, with a look of regret that was actually mockery.

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