Centro de Referência do Futebol Brasileiro

ABSTRACT: In its introduction - the "warm-up" - this doctoral thesis sets out to advance the following idea: the study of Brazilian soccer should be part of the curriculum of graduate courses in Tourism within the context of "Brazil’s Cultural Heritage." As such, the work postulates three hypotheses. In the "first-half’ section, the author attempts to show how soccer in Brazil is indeed a cultural display and spectacle that reflects intrinsic characteristics of Brazilian popular culture -on this front, the work introduces vivid characters of the beautiful game (such as the goalkeeper, the coach, the executive manager, the referee, the captain, the masseur; the little bird, the super-star, the philosopher, the king, the fan, and the bench-player), all of whom played important roles in curiously remarkable episodes that have been remembered in a similar way as the recollection and celebration of certain folkloric traditions. In the subsequent "half-time" section, Brazil’s identification with the sport is examined and made clear, thus, helping the reader understand Brazil’s motto as the "País do Futebol" ("Country of Soccer"). The importance of soccer in Brazil as a cultural element is developed in the "second half’ through a careful collection of data and analysis aimed at showing soccer’s frequent and recurring presence and/or representation as subject-matters of various cultural manifestations (such as Music, Academy, Literature, Plastic Arts, Media, Comedy, Language, Technology, Market, Politics etc). In the next section, entitled "extra-time," the author puts greater emphasis on a set of activities and acts (such as the protection and preservation of monuments and places for an eventual inscription on heritage lists, eradication of violence, the Statute of the Soccer Fan, education, internal and external promotion, services in the hotel industry, thematic tours, museums, commercial exploitation, and specialization of agencies) that show how soccer can be used as a key motivating mechanism for the growth and further development of recreational and tourism-related activities in Brazil. At last, the "penalty shoot-out" section gives the author the chance to put concluding remarks on the contents of the preceding chapters