The president’s favorite team did not pay a R$400 million loan to Caixa; bank analyzes award to alleviate debt
O Corinthians reinforced on Friday (November 17, 2023) its intention to renegotiate the company’s debts Neo Química Arena with the Caixa Econômica Federal. The president of the state bank, Carlos Vieira, and the Corinthians leader, Dúlio Monteiro, met to discuss the proposal to settle the debts.
Caixa lent R$400 million to finance the stadium in 2013, but the amount was not fully repaid. With added interest and monetary correction, Brazilian sports media say that the current debt is around R$600 million. O Power360 found that the figure is lower.
The Corinthians stadium is located in the Itaquera neighborhood, in São Paulo, and was built with public money. The work was confirmed in September 2010 and began the following year. The arena was a project for the 2014 Football World Cup.
The estimated budget for construction was R$958 million, according to Corinthians.
The president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT), who is a Corinthians fan, was involved in the negotiations to build the arena. The president of the club at the time, the former deputy Andres Sanchez (PT-SP), said in 2011 that the PT member served as a bridge with Odebrecht (today Novonor), responsible for lifting the structure.
“Lula and I built the stadium. I guarantee it will cost more than R$1 billion. Point. Nobody changed the financial part. Just me, Lula and Emílio Odebrecht [então presidente do Conselho de Administração da empresa]”, declared Sanchez in an interview with the magazine Epochin 2011.
Odebrecht was one of the companies involved in the corruption scheme uncovered by the Lava Jato operation. Executives of the construction company paid bribes to politicians and public officials to obtain advantages in bidding contracts.
According to the former Corinthians boss, Lula’s help was almost a personal matter. “It’s kind of like Lula’s request to my father: ‘Help Corinthians build a private stadium’. Just that. I didn’t get involved in this matter, but we started trying to help Corinthians build the stadium.”Sanchez said in the interview.
On the day of the signing of the agreement with Odebrecht, Lula celebrated the partnership. “It’s a historic day, as historic as Basílio’s goal against Ponte Preta in 1977”declared in reference to the final of the São Paulo championship that year, which ended a 23-year fast for the black and white São Paulo team without titles.
The arena finished being built in 2014, when the President of the Republic was Dilma Rousseff (PT). The venue hosted the opening game of that year’s World Cup, a clash between Brazil and Croatia that ended with a score of 3-1 for the Brazilian team.
LULA SUPPORT CONTINUES
The day before the meeting with Caixa, Dúlio Monteiro was received by Lula in Brasília. In your profile on X (formerly Twitter), he shared a photo with the Chief Executive and handed out a shirt with goalkeeper Cássio’s autograph.
“It was a great pleasure to present him with the mantle of an idol like Cássio and talk about this passion that unites us. May Saint George protect and enlighten you. Go Corinthians!”wrote Dúlio.
Lula replied: “One day I will score a goal by taking a penalty against him”.
DISCARD PRECATORIES
According to the specialized press, Corinthians wants to use court orders to pay its debts to Caixa. The club hopes to take on bank debts with smaller amounts. O Power360 found that the bank rules out this possibility and is still in the analysis process.
Precatório are titles issued by public authorities, such as the government, to receive debts recognized by the Court. The resource is used when the State is ordered to pay a sum of money, but is unable to do so (understand this report). This is not the case with Corinthians.
The proposal already published by Corinthians is that part of the debt, R$300 million, will be transferred directly to the state bank. The money comes from a copyright agreement (called naming rights) with the pharmaceutical Neo Químicafrom the group Hyper Farmawhich today gives its name to the stadium in Itaquera.
BOX & FOOTBALL
The recent change of command at Caixa Econômica Federal could mean the return of the state bank’s involvement in the country’s most popular sport. From 2012 to 2019, the institution sponsored dozens of teams from series A and B of the Brazilian championship, appearing on more than half of the shirts of the Brasileirão clubs in 2018.
Investments ceased at the beginning of the president’s administration Jair Bolsonaro (PL) and continued like this during the first months of Lula’s 3rd term, with Rita Serrano at the head of the bank.
Caixa’s new president, Carlos Vieira, could take the state-owned company back to football. On the day of his inauguration, Vieira said he did not rule out the possibility of developing an arena for Flamengo, in Rio de Janeiro, through a PPP (Public-Private Partnership).
“If it’s profitable for Caixa, we’ll do it. Flamengo is an exponent of Brazilian sport. We can do a PPP, for example, but I need to understand the project better. A private business is always welcome if it is good for Caixa”said in an interview on Thursday (9.nov) for the newspaper The globe.
The Rio club wants to build a stadium where the São Cristóvão Gasometer is located, in the central region of Rio de Janeiro. The land is owned by Caixa.
Currently, the Flamengo is one of the managers –alongside Fluminense– of Maracanãthe largest stadium in Brazil.
Flamengo’s president, Rodolfo Landim, was close to the previous government. He was approached for the presidency of Petrobras. The red-black leader was in possession of Vieira on November 9th.
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