LAND OF FOOTBALL?
Sprawling study suggests football fans in Brazil are rarer than once thought
Fans during a match between Flamengo and Corinthians, Brazil's two most popular teams. Photo: A. Paes/Shutterstock
In a newspaper column in 1976, famous Brazilian playwright Nelson Rodrigues referred to his home country as the “nation in football boots,” not only for Brazil’s repeated success at World Cups, but also for his countrymen’s passion for the sport.
This image has been cultivated and propagated over generations, and, for better or worse, the country’s international image is still that of the land of “soccer and samba.” How accurate that is remains well up for debate.
Newspaper O Globo, in partnership with polling institutes Ipsos and Ipec, has released the results of a nationwide survey that, for the first time, allows us a clear picture of football fandom around Brazil.
The groundbreaking study reveals two main takeaways…
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