Join the Play the Game day in São Paulo, Brazil, 24 October
SESC’s sports and culture centre Vila Mariana in Saõ Paul will be the setting for Play the Game's one day seminar. Photo: Emerson R. Zamprogno
Over the next four years, Brazil will be the international hotspot for sport politics as the country undertakes a task not tried by any country since Mexico 40 years ago: the double hosting of the world’s two greatest sports and media events, the FIFA World Cup in 2014 and the Summer Olympics of 2016.
A vivid debate is already taking place in Brazil about who should benefit from the massive public investments in sport. Is this an occasion for the country to further strengthen its democratization and modernization process? Is it just a good opportunity for some industries to make money? Or is there a road in between?
The Brazilian debate is intrinsically linked to the international debate on sport and society, and whatever the outcome of these events will be, they will leave a mark for many years on the Brazilian and international sports community.
Therefore Play the Game has happily accepted an invitation from the big Brazilian sports organization SESC in São Paulo to organize a one-day mini-Play the Game event, putting their facilities at our disposal.
The event will take place on 24 October from approx. 10-18 in SESC’s sports and culture centre Vila Mariana in Saõ Paulo. It is followed by Move2012, the annual congress on grass-root sport organised by ISCA and this year hosted by SESC SP from 24-27 October.
The Play the Game day programme will focus on three main issues:
- Mega-events and their legacy
- Transparency requirements for sport and for big events
- The need (or not) for shaping a national sports strategy in Brazil
Though preparations are still at an early stage, the Play the Game day has already attracted the attention of some of the best sports journalists, academic researchers and social entrepreneurs in Brazil.
The national association for investigative journalism in Brazil, Abraji, has kindly offered its partnership and assistance, and also the Danish Cultural Institute in Rio de Janeiro is assisting.
Among the notable Brazilian speakers already confirmed are:
- Juca Kfouri, investigative journalist and blogger
- Alberto Murray, lawyer, former member of the Brazilian Olympic Committee
- Roberto Maluf de Mesquita, professor, Universidade Nove de Julho
- Christopher Gaffney, visiting professor, Graduate School of Architecture and Urbanism (Laboratório Grandes Projetos de Desenvolvimento Urbano - GDPU), Universidade Federal Fluminense
- Tatiane Hilgemberg, lecturer, Universidade Juiz de Fora
Play the Game’s international director Jens Sejer Andersen will present the results of the World Stadium Index and its Brazilian aspects, as well as feed the debate on governance in sport, drawing among other things on the current Action for Good Governance in International Sports Organisations (AGGIS). Many other invitations are in the pipeline.
We now call Brazilian and international experts and stakeholders in sport who have the possibility of joining this event to submit their proposals for a presentation, and we will do our best to fit it into the programme.
If you are interested in presenting during this mini-Play the Game, please email directly to jens@playthegame.org