By Samindra Kunti
August 24 – Next season’s Brazilian top flight will not pause for the 2021 Copa America, the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) has revealed after releasing next year’s calendar.
Brazil’s domestic football schedule has always been of a questionable density with the state championships preceding the national league, but the coronavirus pandemic has further compounded planning issues for the local governing body.
The 2021 season will kick off on February 28, just four days after the completion of the current campaign, which had to be delayed due to the global health crisis and enforced shutdown of the game. This will leave Brazil’s top flight clubs with no time to prepare for the state championships, which will conclude on May 23 after 16 match days, the same number as in 2020.
At the end of May, the Brazilian national league will get underway with 38 rounds of matches and a season finale on December 5. It means that the domestic top flight will continue during the Copa America, which Colombia and Argentina are set to co-host following this year’s postponement. In 2019, Brazil hosted the competition and the domestic league had to be halted for the duration of the tournament.
The league won’t stop for the 2022 World Cup qualifiers either, which in the past has often given rise to conflicts between club and country. In 2021, there are five FIFA dates with 10 rounds of matches in the South American qualifiers, but the national league will simply keep on playing.
September provides an illustration of the overload of matches and contradictory calendar. On September 1, a full round of matches in the Brazilian top flight is planned, but on September 2, Brazil’s national team is due to play a World Cup qualifier. The same scenario applies to September 5 and 7.
Contact the writer of this story, Samindra Kunti, at moc.l1734941592labto1734941592ofdlr1734941592owedi1734941592sni@o1734941592fni1734941592