São Paulo – Carlezzo Advogados Associados, a law firm in São Paulo, opened its first international unit in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates last November. The office renders sports consulting services and specializes in deals between football teams in the Gulf and South America.
Carlezzo was founded in 2004 and provides legal advisory in Sports Law. “Our company is fairly active on an international level,” says partner Eduardo Carlezzo.
“Our strategy is to grow more and more on the international market. Football teams in Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates are hiring lots of Brazilian players lately, and investment is growing a lot,” says the attorney on explaining the reasons for opening an office in the Arab country.
In the UAE, Carlezzo Advogados works in collaboration with Saleh Alobeidli Advocates & Legal Consultants, the first Middle East firm to focus solely on sports law.
The services rendered by the Brazilian office in Dubai include advisory to Brazilian athletes’ transfers to the region; advisory to local teams in international transfers, assistance in FIFA bids, and advisory to Brazilian companies looking to do business for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, to be hosted by Qatar, and other deals involving teams from the Middle East and South America.
“Qatar is a construction-rich country and this means opportunities, especially to building companies. There is a demand in civil construction, engineering and architecture,” Carlezzo notes.
The attorney also stresses that Brazilian players and coaches are in demand and that the profile of professionals wanted is changing. “The demand has changed over time. Until a few years back, they wanted players close to the end of their careers. They gradually realized they need younger athletes. Now, the athletes who make the move into the Middle East are still mature, but no longer towards the end of their careers; they can still play high-level football,” says Carlezzo.
According to the Carlezzo Advogados partner, Saudi Arabia is the Gulf country with the strongest football league. The UAE and Qatar are also investing in their teams.
“For illustration’s sake, in 2013, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE spent a combined US$ 133 million in international player transfers. And this sum concerns only payments to the teams [that sold their athletes], it doesn’t include the players’ actual wages,” he says.
The office
Carlezzo Advogados Associados provides consulting to teams in countries such as Japan, Portugal, Chile, Uruguay, Paraguay, Bolivia and Colombia. The firm’s clients include over 120 teams in Brazil and abroad.
Client teams include Brazilian clubs such as Botafogo, Coritiba, Figueirense, Sport and Bahia, Chile’s Colo-Colo and Universidad Catolica, and Uruguay’s Nacional and Defensor.
Contact
Carlezzo Advogados Associados
Alameda Lorena, 800, 18th floor – Jardins, São Paulo
Tel.:+55 11 3885-6091
São Paulo/SP – Brazil
Website: www.carlezzo.com.br
Email: contato@carlezzo.com.br
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
