Brazilian Soccer

“The English invented the game, but the Brazilians perfected it.” This week we will travel to Brazil, which has a rich tradition of harvesting the top players in the world. Players such as Ronaldinho, Pele, Ronaldo, and Kaka have been touted as some of the best players of their generation. Ronaldinho and Pele are both names that frequently pop up when arguments about the “best player ever” are thrown around. Brazil is a perennial favorite every time the World Cup rolls around. Brazil is the only country to win the World Cup a record 5 times while also being the only country to have qualified for every Cup since its inception in the 1930's. This coming World Cup in the summer of 2014 will be taking place in the heart of South American soccer in the city of Rio de Janeiro.

                Football arrived in Brazil in 1894 from two Britons, Charles Miller and Oscar Cox.  The sport was sculpted around the English style of play before those unique strongholds started to fade. Brazilians began to transition from a game of long balls and brute force to a tactical battle. Soccer quickly swept the region and the sport of soccer transitioned to the rest of the world into what has become the most widely played sport in the world. Around the world Brazilian players and coaches are coveted by professional squads to help teach the Brazilian style of soccer. As of this season there are over 600 Brazilian soccer players playing the sport in the Europe’s top leagues.

The Brazilian style of soccer consists of each player advancing their skills and techniques within a youth soccer development program in Brazil. Brazilian soccer is the perfect combination of discipline and skill, mixed with a cultivated imagination. This is achieved through highly specialized training on an ongoing basis. Coaches are broach in to teach players the special training drills, but Brazilians start from an early age. In addition, many of the top players have played Futsal during their youth, which contributed to their skills development. Futsal is like soccer but with a much smaller furry ball. Brazil is also the only country to have won the Futsal World Cup a record six times. 

Today the Brazilian style is starting to be questioned. The national team has failed to contend in the last two World Cups, which to their standards is the longest drought in the countries soccer history. As Brazilian players move to play in the European leagues the players have begun to adapt their style of play changing the culture of the sport back in the homeland.

Next week we will move away from South America, and take our first steps into Asia. We will jump into the short history of Japanese soccer and how the sport has grown over the last decade. Although the sport is newer than in most nations the game is quickly growing and Japan is beginning to produce athletes of the European caliber. Come back next week a join us for our trip to Japan.