World Cup Week

Loaned goals

Footballers from all over the world are about to take part in the sport’s greatest festival. Their employers may be watching with mixed feelings.

Jun 3rd 2010

The Economist: World Cup

 

 

 

 

 

 FOR a month, starting on June 11th, the eyes of half the world will be rolling in exasperation, boredom or indifference. The eyes of the other half will be glued to television and computer screens in living rooms, bars and (admit it) offices, watching soccer matches beamed from South Africa. The FIFA World Cup, the biggest international festival of the most popular sport on the planet, is about to kick off.

Because a vast, global audience is worth a fortune in broadcasting and marketing rights, FIFA, football’s global governing body, can expect a healthy profit from Africa’s first World Cup, even though it recently had to find an extra $100m to make sure everything would be ready on time. Citigroup, a bank, estimates that the previous tournament, in Germany in 2006, yielded $1.8 billion. Most of what FIFA makes is reinvested in the game—for example, in coaching youngsters.

The players in South Africa are employed not by FIFA or the 200-odd national federations affiliated to it but by clubs, chiefly in Europe. Some, such as Lionel Messi, of Barcelona and Argentina (pictured), joined their clubs as boys. There are few other industries in which businesses must lend their employees to a higher authority, but FIFA obliges clubs to do just that. In effect, argues Stefan Szymanski, an economist at City University’s Cass Business School, FIFA and its affiliates can use their monopoly over football to borrow clubs’ best assets (and sometimes return them tired or damaged). Like it or not, the clubs must comply. Mr Szymanski says this arrangement is “a bit like the Mafia”. 

Players must be released not only for the World Cup and its qualifying matches, but also for regional tournaments and friendlies (matches unrelated to a competition). Clubs face losing players to international calls from all parts of the globe, not just to their own national teams. The damage to the club can be severe. Michael Essien, a Ghanaian star, has not played for Chelsea, his London club, since being crocked in training for the Africa Cup of Nations in January. It is not the first time he was injured while playing for his country. He is missing the World Cup too. 

Word list
boredom -chateação, desanimo
to be glued - estar colado
to beam - transmitir
broadcasting - teletransmissões
tournament - disputa, competição
to borrow - pegar emprestado
to comply - cumprir (permitir)
to be released - ser liberado
to miss - perder (sentir falta)

Tradutor: http://www.google.com/language_tools


- Leiam e discutam as perguntas abaixo (postem suas ideias e respostas, clicando em "COMENTÁRIOS"):

1. Why will the eyes of half the world be glued to the television?
2. What does the world cup have to do with marketing?
3. What is FIFA's demand of players release compared to?
4. What is the main criticism about the world cup in the text? Explain: