Brazilian football in times of Covid-19

Welcome back to the Brazil Sports newsletter. This week, sport around the country has been all but completely canceled due to the Covid-19 outbreak, and we look at what that will mean for the year ahead. Plus, former football boss Ricardo “Tricky Ricky” Teixeira makes a surprise return to the public spotlight, and there’s news of another trophy to add to Ronaldinho’s collection—with an extra twist. Enjoy your read!

Brazilian sport gets the coronavirus

With similar situations seen around the world, Brazil’s major sporting leagues and competitions have been suspended until further notice, due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The Brazilian football confederation announced that all national-level competitions would be interrupted, and several regional federations followed suit by pausing their ongoing state championships, with others expected to announce similar measures later today.

Hysteria? After Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro broke Health Ministry protocol at the weekend, shaking hands with supporters in public demonstrations, he declared to the press that canceling football matches was “hysterical,” but club administrators have largely been open to suspensions, fearing that their players may become infected.

Protests. On the weekend, state championship matches went ahead behind closed doors, but some clubs—such as Grêmio, Vasco da Gama and Botafogo—took to the field wearing protective masks in protest.

• The day the World Health Organization declared Covid-19 a pandemic, Grêmio were also forced to play a Copa Libertadores match against bitter rivals Internacional in front of 51,000 supporters.

What’s to come? Suspending or potentially canceling state championships is less of an issue, with the real question concerning the fate...