November 5 – Brazilian football officials have done it again: present an anachronistic club calendar, including 16 match days for the state championships, that will see the 2022 domestic top flight end in November, just in time for the Qatar World Cup.
The Confederation of Brazilian Football (CBF) drew up the domestic calendar with the 2022 season will kicking off on 26 January with the 27 state championships that precede the national championship. Those local competitions, often processions of David-vs-Goliath matches, have long been criticised for sucking the life out of the domestic game before any serious matches have been played.
The kick-off also collides with FIFA dates. Brazil will play Ecuador and Paraguay on 27 January and 1 February. Clubs have the obligation to release players to the national team for FIFA dates. Calendar officials have ensured the club-vs-country confrontations will endure in the Brazilian game next season.
Last week, Brazil coach Tite selected just one home-based player – Gremio goalkeeper Gabriel Chapecó – for November’s World Cup qualifiers against Colombia and Argentina. In general, however, players from Flamengo and some of Brazil’s other big clubs feature in the squad, which leads to furious criticism from club coaches, who lose key personnel – the Brazilian league doesn’t stop for FIFA dates.
Flamengo have asked the CBF to move the kick-off dates forward to avoid conflict.
The Brasileiro Serie A, the CBF’s top flight club competition, will kick off on April 10 and end, early, on November 13. Clubs have the obligation to release players on November 14 at the latest as the World Cup, the first-ever to be played in winter due to the climate conditions in Qatar, kicks off on 21 November and culminates on 18 December with the final.
Brazil’s calendar remains tied to the calendar year and out of sync with the European club season. It is a situation that will arguably keep the domestic game on the back foot for the foreseeable future.
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