Mercantilization of Brazilian football: instruments, advances and resistance

• Main Author: Gonçalves, Julio Cesar de Santana
• Publication Date: 2006
• Other Authors: Carvalho, Cristina Amélia
• Format: Article
• Language: por
• Source: Cadernos EBAPE.BR
• Download full: https://periodicos.fgv.br/cadernosebape/article/view/4970

Brazilian football, as a social phenomenon, had already been subordinated to the substantive reason based on values and tradition. However, this sport has become a business due to its attractiveness as a source of wealth. When sport organizations incoporate the logic of the market, the consequence is the adoption of elements from the business world in the administration of these organizations. Managerial concepts and practices become present, changing the management’s discourse as well as the basis for their legitimation in their specific context. Thus, the emergence of a new logic of reference produces new actors, new procedures and categories that were exclusive to the environment of entrepreneurial organizations, like goods, customers, efficiency, results and competitiveness. When players are submitted to the logic of the market, they become goods, supporters become consumers, the game becomes a financial asset and the football is seen as a great business. Relations are based on impersonality, strategies of control are developed since they assure the achievement of objectives, as well as modernizing market actions, and the legitimate management is the one wich is based on professionalism. This study contributes to the discussion on the scenario of social change wich includes not only sport organizations but also arts, cinema and even public spaces, with the purpose of trying to provide future reflexions.