São Paulo – The football team of Brasília, the Brazilian Federal District, is currently in Sudan for three friendly matches with local teams. This is the team’s second trip to Africa to play friendly games. On its first trip, the team from Brasília beat Botswana 1-0 and Mozambique 3-1. The current trip is part of a term of cooperation signed in April last year by the governments of Brasília and Sudan, providing for partnerships in sanitation, sports, culture and education.
Last Thursday (15th), a match between the teams of Brasília and Khartoum, the Sudanese capital, ended tied 1-1. On Saturday, another 1-1 tie, this time against Al-Hilal, the winner of the local championship. This Monday (19th), the team from Brasília will play Al Merreikh, which finished second in the Sudanese football league. This is not the first time that a Brazilian team travels to Sudan. Santos football club went to the country in 1973 and beat Al-Hilal 1-0 with a goal scored by Pelé.
According to the vice president for the Midwest region of the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF), Weber Magalhães, the three friendly matches are good for the Sudanese, who are having the opportunity to go up against a Brazilian team, and for the Brazilian players. “They (the players) thought this could add to their career experience and yield good fruits. They are playing against teams which have been playing good football,” he said.
The opportunity came up when a committee of Brasília government officials met with Sudanese authorities to discuss partnerships. “On one occasion, the [then] vice governor (Paulo Octavio, no longer in office; the current vice governor is Tadeu Fillippelli) met with the Sudanese ambassador to Brasília, Abd Elghani Elkarim. They discussed other topics and then football came up. That was when the opportunity arose,” said Magalhães.
The air tickets and lodging of Brasília’s technical committee and team were paid by the Sudanese government. Coach Reinaldo Guedini took 30 players to Sudan. These athletes are not playing the local championship in Brasília.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
