Brazilian businesswoman Leila Pereira, 59, often feels the loneliness of being the only one among men. A feeling that has intensified since two years ago she became the sole president of one of the great soccer clubs in Latin America, Palmeiras, from São Paulo (Brazil), which is on a historic streak of titles. . Pereira has begun her third and final year of her presidential term with a bang: this Tuesday she gave a press conference to which she only invited female journalists. As expected, some male colleagues protested. The president has presented the gesture as a criticism of “structural machismo.” She intended to make men feel the exclusion, the lack of opportunities that women in general suffer. She has also given news: coach Abel Ferreira has extended her contract for one year.
The directive has encouraged a specific experiment to force the empathy of those who hold power towards those who demand their fair share. To those who have criticized her for leaving men out on this occasion, she has responded bluntly: “I tell them 'don't be hysterical', which is what they tell us when we protest. “We don't even want a privilege, but rather opportunities to show that we are competent, that we want space in football.”
The Palmeiras president's first appearance in 2024 has undoubtedly been atypical. And also “historic”, according to her and several of the journalists present in the press room of the club's football academy. Two of her four vice presidents who accompany her on the board are also women.
The arrival of the businesswoman—and her checkbook—has coincided with the best streak of awards in the history of this club, but not even that has freed her from harsh criticism. The men's team has won six titles in two years: the Recopa Sudamericana (2022), a Brazilian Super Cup (2023), two Brazilian championships and two of the State of São Paulo. The women's team won the Libertadores. Pereira, who came to this century-old club founded by Italian immigrants at the beginning of the 20th century by marriage, intends to run for re-election at the end of the year.
The fact that two of her husband's companies – part of an emporium that she has managed alone for years – are the sponsors of Palmeiras is the cause of the main criticism she receives. Many see this as an obvious conflict of interest that the president flatly rejects.
It was she who suggested to her husband, José Roberto Lamacchia, who is around 80, the idea of sponsoring the team of which he was a member since he was a child through Crefisa, a successful personal loan company with millions of clients among the poorest Brazilians. This is how this woman who maintains the accent of her native Rio de Janeiro landed in football.
This Tuesday she declared herself convinced that, if a man occupied the presidency, he would not receive some of the criticism he suffers. “When Palmeiras loses, the responsibility falls on Leila; When he wins, he wins despite Leila”, she commented ironically. “Could it be that I don't have some merit in those victories?”
Reflecting the prevailing tension, the only question that the president did not want to answer was about the criticism against her from the main group of the green and white fans.
Pereira arrived to the meeting with the press on time and wearing an elegant violet shirt. Her speech also had an obvious feminist flavor. The vast majority of the professionals accredited for this occasion are specialized in sports, but her daily work does not include coverage of a great team like Palmeiras, a niche for a male majority. The teams, the men's and the women's, their money, their signings, and the many criticisms against Pereira have capitalized on the two hours of questions and answers.
The Palmeiras boss has emphasized the need to manage the clubs in a sustainable way. “If not, we are going to continue losing players. “They want to go abroad because we can't compete with those European clubs.” The most current example is Endrick Felipe Moreira, a Palmeiras gem, who will go to Real Madrid next July when he turns 18. He was a 16-year-old teenager when the signing was closed, for around 60 million euros.
At all times he has emphasized that he manages the club as a company “that has the particularity of the passion of the followers.” But he has made it clear that signings are decided by the coach and the technical commission, “not by popular clamor” and that, before bringing in big stars or contracting unaffordable debts, there is a commitment to pay salaries in a timely manner. “The benefits in football are the titles,” he insisted, boasting of his achievements. He has also made it clear that in his opinion the king of sport in Brazil is not elitist and that the ticket prices are affordable. And that his players will continue to use the family's private plane for free because the Brazilian soccer calendar is crazy and the logistics are hell.
He has promised that before the end of the year, when the current sponsorship contract expires, a tender will be opened in search of “suitable companies” with healthy accounts to assume that role and that the board will choose the best.
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