By Samindra Kunti
December 7 – Marcus Antonio Vicente is the new president of the Brazilian Football Association CBF. He assumed the position on an interim basis after Marco Polo Del Nero was indicted by the FBI last week.
The top position at the CBF is cursed after successive presidents Ricardo Teixeira, Jose Maria Marin and Marco Polo Del Nero have all been forced out after accusations of corruption – all are currently the subject of US criminal investigation with Marin already being held in custody. The CBF has asked for Del Nero’s resignation.
The CBF has long been accused of mismanagement, using the Brazilian national team to the benefit of a few self-serving football autocrats. Earlier this year Brazilian investigative reporter Jamil Chade revealed that external forces (marketing agents and sponsors) influence team selection of the world’s most recognisable football team.
The new CBF boss isn’t a reformist. At 61, Marcus Vicente is a controversial football figure in the state of Espirito Santo, just north of Rio de Janeiro. He has combined a life in both politics and football. Vicente became the president of the Espirito Santo state football in 1994. Gustavo Veira succeeded him this year.
Vicente is not a popular figure among football fans. Football in Espirito Santo lingers in the lower leagues of the Brazilian pyramid, notably with Rio Branco in the fourth division. His state ranks as the 23rd out of 27 in Brazil. Fans criticize him over his joint-role as a senator in Brasilia.
Football turned senator Romario, who with a commissional inquiry has been at the forefront in the fight against corruption, has welcomed the news.
“We now have a great victory,” said Romario. “Another step in freeing our beloved sport football of corruption. There is still a lot left to do, but Del Nero was a symbol reminiscent of the era of Ricardo Teixeira. They have fallen like dominos: Teixeira, Marin and Del Nero. They were all involved in the same crime, according to the investigations of the FBI: they conspired in an intentional manner to create a system of fraud at the CBF.”
The FBI has accused Del Nero of taking bribes in agreeing to sponsorship deals and selling TV rights for the Copa do Brasil and the Copa Libertadores.
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