A new club competition in Brazil got underway on Wednesday (the Sul-Minas-Rio Cup), according to Tim Vickery of ESPN. But for this debutant competition, "the action on the field is less important than the political context." It has become "increasingly clear in recent years that the Brazilian game is not equipped to compete on a global scale in its current state." Part of the explanation for this "lies in the calendar." The national championship starts in May and runs all the way through to early December. Before then, the State Championships are played -- "one for each of the 27 states that make up this giant country." The State Championships "were once useful and important." That, however, "no longer applies." It is "surprising that it has taken so long for the big clubs to do anything about it," but now they have "woken up." Twelve clubs from five different states "have united to form their own competition, lasting from Wednesday night until the end of March." Two Rio clubs (Flamengo and Fluminense) are involved; "plus the big two from Belo Horizonte" in the state of Minas Gerais (Cruzeiro and Atletico Mineiro); "the much smaller but traditional America;" the big two from Porto Alegre in the southern state of Rio Grande do Sul (Gremio and Internacional); and five other clubs from "another couple of states in the south." They call themselves the "Primeira Liga" (first league) and the competition, reflecting the location of the teams, "is being referred to as the Sul(South)-Minas-Rio Cup." It might "all seem unwieldy, and, in its embryonic stage it probably is." But it is "also highly significant." Because the competition is a "direct challenge" to the power structure of the Brazilian game, which is based on the State Federations. These Federations "jealously guard their own State Championships." However, the 12 clubs of the Primeira Liga have "voted with their feet." Behind the scenes, there is a "battle going on." The Rio Federation "is apoplectic that two teams from its jurisdiction have jumped ship, and is considering all kinds of sanctions against them." The truth of the matter, though, is that the Federations "have lost power" (ESPN, 1/28).
