Money Talks

Football has massive publicity anywhere, especially so in Brazil. Interesting though is when it moves from the sports to the economy pages as it is happening as the year begins. The general public will always think of the game as leisure or passion, but no one can deny it is also and mainly business, big business!

The 2015 Brazilian Champion Corinthians Paulista had an outstanding season. At first under financial constraints and losing a number of players seeking higher pays elsewhere, it came to be viewed as the underdog. However as the competition unfolded it managed to make a striking comeback, finishing well ahead of the runner up and clinching the title with three rounds still remaining.

Once praised as Brazil’s strongest contender for this year’s South American Cup, Corinthians found itself under heavy artillery right in the first days of January. Football in China is a novelty, but that does not prevent it from moving huge sums of money. In a little more than a week a handful of key Corinthians players have allegedly been drawn towards the Far East by multimillion dollar contracts.

For such players in evidence, most of whom are the subject of added visibility for being often called to the National Team, the outmost achievement is to be hired by one of the top teams in Europe. Moving to a distant incipient Chinese league instead normally means departing from the spotlight – perhaps for good.

It is true that for those professionals hitting 30 years of age and anticipating decline in their careers, cash will tend to be the predominant factor in their job choices. However in practice the same will also apply to some younger players who could otherwise pursue higher glory, fame and fortune.

What lies behind the exodus of football players is in truth the 40% currency devaluation seen in Brazil in the past twelve months. That political crisis-fueled event ultimately leads to the analogy with the state of affairs in the country’s marketplace. After all it is such abnormal situation that makes players susceptible to the call of the Chinese mermaid, just as products, services, assets remain undervalued, at least for the time being.