FEA TURE — M AR A C ANÃ ST ADIU M “
There are many beautiful stadiums around the world but the Maracanã is a temple, while many others are simply arenas. A temple transformed into a modern arena. That’s why, for me, it is the number one in the world... — Marcia Beatriz Lins Izidoro, Rio State Sports and Leisure Secretary.
“We have more than 1,000 items within the museum
and there is an almost endless history to be told and shown in a very special place. We have to find the com- pany that will be the most suited to carry on this opera- tion in the best possible way.” An open tender is scheduled for 2013, on completion of the stadium, and an operator could be in place even before the 2014 FIFA World Cup™ finals kick off. Heavy- weights of the entertainment operating business are already in the mix, including IMX; IMG’s partnership with the EBX group of Brazilian billionaire Eike Batista, one of the top ten richest people in the world. Marcia’s office is in for a good auction. “This bid for the Maracanã will attract interest from
all over the world because the stadium has plenty of aggregated value. It is iconic, it is a reference, it brings revenue from different sources, and it is adding new services,” she said. Whoever takes over will be inheriting a venue stag-
ing up to 100 matches per year, with Rio’s four major clubs all having played here in the past. A new operator will have to make more from fewer matches and increase revenue from other sources and events. “The Maracanã needs to be run by the private sector.
The venue will remain ’public’ belonging to the government of the State of Rio, but also a heritage for Brazil and the world,” Marcia insisted. “We will do a concession, looking at the possibilities of the stadium offering in the future to be able to increase revenue through not only football matches, but also other types of sport and non-sporting events, as well as through the museum and other activities.”
Social Impact The FIFA World Cup™ finals are also making a social impact in less privileged areas of this stunning city. It is bringing peace to areas of Rio that once lived under urban warfare. A police programme occupying these communities is bringing positive results. Many shanty towns around the area of the Maracanã are now free of violence. Marcia outlined the significance of this victory against the gangs that were ruling and terrifying whole communities: “The State recovered all of the area that
20 th AN N I V ER S AR Y P AR T II/ S U M M ER 1 2 P AN S T AD I A 41
was in control of the drug dealers, the so-called ‘parallel power.’ The public authorities’ intervention is regenerat- ing these areas. Maracanã will be a catalyst to improving the lives of those in these communities.” Marcia believes that the stadium upgrade will con-
”
tribute to the regeneration of the whole area: “This is Maracanã’s big mission — to energise all of the areas around it, in a very noble part of the City — near the cen- tre and very close to the link between the main North and South zones.” Marcia summed up her campaign to make the new
Maracanã as charming and popular as the old one, by saying that the iconic ground will always belong to the people. She said: “Maracanã has a unique place in the hearts of the people, they feel like they partly own it. ‘The Maraca is ours’, the locals say, expressing this feeling of belonging. People want the Maracanã for themselves, and look after the stadium as if it were their own. There are many beautiful stadiums around the world but the Maracanã is a temple, while many others are simply are- nas. A temple transformed into a modern arena. That’s why, for me, it is the number one in the world.” ✪
Author’s Credits: Pedro Redig is a Brazilian freelance journalist based in London. He works as a writer, TV producer/editor, has an MBA in Football Industries, and is a Stadium and Media Consultant. He can be contacted via email at either:
Pedro.redig@
mac.com or
predig@hotmail.com (also on LinkedIn and Facebook).
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