• Atlético-MG breaks record for the Socios.com platform with sales of 850,000 fan tokens
  

  Much recently, two types of fan tokens, a type of crypto currency, were sold out in a very short time by Atlético-MG fans. Alvinegra fans bought 850,000 digital coins on the Socios.com platform, generating up to a revenue of R$9 million. Of this amount collected, half went directly to the accounts of the Belo Horizonte club. This is one of the fastest growing markets, not only here in Brazil, but also around the world.

  To pay for the “gloves” of striker Lionel Messi, the biggest signing of world football in 2021, Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) made use of this cryptocurrency. With the arrival of the Argentine to the Cidade Luz club, the fan token unit experienced a great appreciation and increased by more than 50%. In addition to the hiring of ace Hermano, along with the arrivals of other athletes such as defender Sérgio Ramos, goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma and midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum, PSG saw their value appreciate by approximately US$1.2 billion with the digital currency alone.

  At Atlético-MG, the directors named their project $GALO. Fan token units were sold out in a matter of minutes. The first batch alone, with 600,000 units, lasted no more than eight minutes. It was the fourth fastest sale on Socios.com. The second wave was 250 thousand units.

  Fans who acquired this asset will have access to several exclusive promotions, with the right to sweepstakes and other types of advantages. But, look, the coolest thing is the opportunity that the owner will have to participate in decisions with little impact. For example, the club may ask fans to choose a particular model of armband to use in a match and so on.

  The main objective of the fan token, in addition to generating extra income for sports entities, is to generate greater interaction between fans and their football team.

  The initiative taken by the Atleticans was also followed by the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF). In early August, in just 19 minutes, the organization that manages football in Brazil, sold out 30 million Brazilian Fan Tokens (BFT). The cryptocurrency was purchased by 13,658 people, who paid €0.50 per unit. In total, about R$90 million were collected. A new sales round is scheduled in the near future. The hope is that more and more Brazilian sports clubs and entities follow the same path as CBF and Atlético-MG.

  Fan tokens around the world

  Like PSG, other giant and traditional European football clubs are also joining the fan tokens. The likes of Juventus, Milan, Barcelona, ​​Atletico Madrid, Rome, Galatasaray, Manchester City, Independiente and the Argentine national team all have their tokens as well. Although, this type of market is not restricted to football. E-sports teams such as Team Alliance, Natus Vincere and Team Heretics, and Formula 1 teams – Aston Martin Cognizant and Alfa Romeo Racing – also have fan tokens. The Professional Fighters League (PFL) – professional MMA league – are also not left out of this latest trend.

  O conteúdo Atlético-MG breaks record for the Socios.com platform with sales of 850,000 fan tokens aparece primeiro em Sambafoot.

• Ex-Corinthians, Pedrinho, has started Shakhtar Donetsk career on a good note
  

  With great promise on his shoulders, Pedrinho was hired by Benfica under the tutelage of Jorge Jesus. During his time with the Portuguese team, the boy from Alagoas had  little to no game time and was available to be negotiated, following the approval of the coach himself. Shakhtar Donetsk’s team decided to bet on the young Brazilian, who was involved in a reported deal worth up to 18m.

  For the Ukrainian team, Pedrinho has so far played three official matches, two of them as a starter. In his second match (30/08), for the Premier League against the PFK Lviv team, the player showed a lot of personality in dribbling and individual plays.

  In the second half, Pedrinho dominated a rebound inside the area, where he capped the score and fired through the goalkeeper’s corner to seal the victory by 3-0.

  In his last match (3/08), Pedrinho started as a starter in the dispute with KRC Genk from Belgium for the Qualifying phase of the Champions League. The match started better for the Belgian club, who scored 1-0 in the first half of the game. In the second stage of the match, Pedrinho was more connected on the field and soon after 63 minutes of the match, he was knocked down inside the opposing area, conceding the penalty which was converted by fellow Brazilian Tetê. The goal of the Ukrainian comeback came from the feet of another Brazilian, Alan Patrick, in the 81st minute. The score line remained at 2-1 until the end of the game, guaranteeing an advantage for Shakhtar in the return game.

  The athlete’s controversial manager, Will Dantas, blames Pedrinho’s lack of success at Benfica on Jorge Jesus, making it clear that there were signs of the coach’s unwillingness to use the Brazilian athlete. The businessman even says that Jorge Jesus will regret this decision in the future. The fact is that the beginning of the former Corinthians player at Shakhtar is encouraging and could be the incentive that the player needed to start to emerge in Europe.

  Will Dantas went on to say that Jorge Jesus should never had made ‘degrading’ comments about Pedrinho, while making a controversial claim that the veteran manager has never been an icon anywhere. In one particular game, Pedrinho was famously brought on only 20 seconds from the end of the game, something that didn’t sit too well with Dantas.

  Moving forward, the choice of the athlete and the manager by the Shakhtar team was an intelligent decision, as, traditionally, the Ukrainian team is a great shelter and environment for Brazilian players to appreciate. In the match against KRC Genk, for example, 10 Brazilian-born players entered the match.

  Pedrinho will face the challenge of achieving prominence in a less visible league. For this, the player fights for space in the team, looking for more opportunities in the Champions League, which is the most visible championship in the world. In a team where he will get ample game-time to show his worth, it’s safe to say Pedrinho could be set for a fruitful campaign this term.

  O conteúdo Ex-Corinthians, Pedrinho, has started Shakhtar Donetsk career on a good note aparece primeiro em Sambafoot.

• E-sports betting market expected to reach 18 billion dollars in 2026
  

  E-sports is the hot topic of the moment. A few years ago, e-sports showed a lot of potential for growth and this was further driven by the arrival of the pandemic in 2020. Now, even with life “returning to normal”, this sector will not only remain strong, but tend to continue growing too high. In fact, it is now predicted to reach a few billion dollars in a few years.

  In 2019, several studies showed that the e-sports betting industry was worth just over $1 billion. At that time, the expectation was that in just over three years this amount would double. However, they were very wrong in the projection and the pandemic was not the only reason for this.

  More in-depth studies point to a market value of approximately 7 billion dollars as early as 2019. One possible reason for this discrepancy is the lack of attention that this market received until recently.

  The e-sports market has been growing for years, with more people watching the various championships of the different titles of the moment and even playing, but this was not reflected in the sports betting business, where most of the revenue generated is still it came from traditional sports, mainly football, baseball and American football.

  But then came the pandemic, in early 2020, and the landscape changed. For traditional sports all over the globe, the pandemic was something to forget and brought a downward spiral that resulted in tons of financial losses all over.

  For emphasis to the above, FC Barcelona revealed they lost more than £150m to the effects of the pandemic. While it was negative reviews for traditional sports, it was quite the opposite for the e-sports sector.

  At that time, the sports betting market was quite heated on national and global proportions. As almost all competitions stopped or were cancelled, the bettors found themselves with no option.

  This allowed for e-sports to gain more patronage among a wider global community while also seeing many big investors play big in the sector.

  In bookmakers’ event listings, for a long time there were e-sports event markets to bet on. For those who are unfamiliar, electronic sports competitions are mostly played in person (known as “on LAN”), however, you can play at a distance, over the internet (as used by all casual gamers at home ).

  As this was the only option, bettors went deeper into the subject and made the market explode.

  Now e-sports has grown into pop culture as well and more people are now familiar with what it is all about in the betting aspect as well. Integration into Hollywood events, real-life sports and many other facets of real life has further helped the course.

  For instance, Fortnite has grown to be more than just a game globally, with many football clubs and celebrities keying into this as well. Players like Mesut Ozil, Harry Kane and a musician in Drake have in one way or the other been linked to the game which has also helped in bringing more popularity to it.

  According to Insider intelligence estimates, there will be a total of 26.6 monthly viewers of e-sports in the United States in 2021. That tally makes for a significant 11.4% increase from 2020. This same estimation hints at 31.4 million monthly users by the year 2023. Just as in previous years, this estimation could come as ‘modest’ once again as there is a good chance these figures could well be under-estimated as it stands.

  As it stands, many factors point to the fact that the e-sports sector could be set for a positive trajectory over in the years to come. All of the predicted data so far seem to back the aforementioned statement.

  Growth of the E-sports sector will remain and get even better

  It’s been a while since life returned to normal in many countries and in a short time this should happen across the planet. Even so, the trend is that the growth of the e-sports betting market will continue.

  Different studies have a coincidence number: 13%, which corresponds to the estimate of the CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate). In short, it is one of the main indicators that show whether or not a market is worth investing in (and, in this case, too much).

  If the forecast comes true, with a CAGR of around 13% between 2021 and 2026, in five years the e-sports betting market should be worth no less than 18.5 billion dollars. Still in the wake of these numbers, analysts predict that in 2027, the value will reach 21 billion dollars.

  Even in the moment of “crisis” for sports betting, during 2020, those focused on e-sports surfed well. According to the UK Gambling Commission, one of Organs most important agencies in the sector in the world, the e-sports betting market grew 2.992% from 2019 to 2020.

  E-sports has grown to be more than just a ‘hobby’

  Before the pandemic, it was estimated that there were 170 million e-sports fans, people who closely follow one or another professional scene and who consume the things that market offers. In a year, until the end of 2020, studies point to an increase in this number, which reached the mark of 250 million people.

  Games like Fortnite, Counterstrike, Dota2, Overwatch, League of Legends and Global Offensive are now the most foremost games in the e-sports industry. Every bookmaker now seems to have almost all of these games in their sportsbook.

  In actual fact, e-sports has become more than just a recreational hobby but has even grown to become a profession for some. At the moments, lots of competitions are now being held which sees e-sports players from across the globe compete over a period of time for grand cash prizes.

  Take for instance Johan Sundstein, commonly known as ‘Notain’ who is the most popular e-sports player in the world. He grew his prominence from becoming an expert in the popular Dota2 game s. He started playing this since he was only 15. As at the latest rankings in 2021, Notain has earned about $7 million from e-sports alone and is currently the most popular player globally.

  As earlier mentioned, big brands are now happy to throw their cash in this and it has resulted to millions of viewers paying close attentions to live streams and watch diligently as they would watch a normal game of basketball, football or NFL.

  Just recently, Entain acquired popular esports betting company, Unikrn for about £50m in what was an example of how valuable e-sports companies have now become in the modern day.

  This means more audiences at championships, more audiences in the arenas watching competitions, more people buying team products and more players investing their bankrolls in e-sports events.

  One of the reasons that drove this is the professionalization of teams and players. Not long ago, CS:GO (Counter-Strike: Global Offensive), one of the world’s top e-sports games, saw a major match-fixing scandal involving one of the biggest teams in the US at the time.

  This caused the sports betting market not to take e-sports seriously, so much so that it took time for the offers at various bookmakers to increase. Today, there are lots and lots of titles available to bet with a series of markets on each of them.

  The future is promising and has already caught the attention of Las Vegas, for example. Luxor Casino, for example, announced that it will build an exclusive arena for e-sports events in the city. Experts think other big casinos should do the same.

  Another point that has been helping a lot in the growth of the e-sports betting market are the regulatory agencies that are starting to pay specific attention to the topic and treat it as something different from conventional sports.

  New games should emerge and heat up the market

  At the end of the first half of 2020, Valorant was launched, a tactical first-person shooter from Riot, the same developer and publisher of the successful League of Legends. It didn’t take long for the game to turn fever and in a few months it already had a robust community, with championships, large organizations hiring experienced players and young talents that were emerging.

  

  This is perhaps the greatest example of how the world of e-sports is fast-paced and asking for space to expand. As the pandemic also helped to form or reactivate the gaming streak of older people who were not already in this world, the developers had an excellent year.

  This becomes an incentive for new titles to appear and the chance of getting great acceptance like Valorant is great. With more games available to the public, more people are starting to enter this world and bigger are the gamblers that fatten the e-sports betting market.

  There is a lot of potential to be realized from the e-sports industry and it would be interesting to see how this sector grows in the nearest future and in years to come.

  

  O conteúdo E-sports betting market expected to reach 18 billion dollars in 2026 aparece primeiro em Sambafoot.

• E-sports betting market expected to reach 18 billion dollars in 2026
  

  E-sports is the hot topic of the moment. A few years ago, e-sports showed a lot of potential for growth and this was further driven by the arrival of the pandemic in 2020. Now, even with life “returning to normal”, this sector will not only remain strong, but tend to continue growing too high. In fact, it is now predicted to reach a few billion dollars in a few years.

  In 2019, several studies showed that the e-sports betting industry was worth just over $1 billion. At that time, the expectation was that in just over three years this amount would double. However, they were very wrong in the projection and the pandemic was not the only reason for this.

  More in-depth studies point to a market value of approximately 7 billion dollars as early as 2019. One possible reason for this discrepancy is the lack of attention that this market received until recently.

  The e-sports market has been growing for years, with more people watching the various championships of the different titles of the moment and even playing, but this was not reflected in the sports betting business, where most of the revenue generated is still it came from traditional sports, mainly football, baseball and American football.

  But then came the pandemic, in early 2020, and the landscape changed. For traditional sports all over the globe, the pandemic was something to forget and brought a downward spiral that resulted in tons of financial losses all over.

  For emphasis to the above, FC Barcelona revealed they lost more than £150m to the effects of the pandemic. While it was negative reviews for traditional sports, it was quite the opposite for the e-sports sector.

  At that time, the sports betting market was quite heated on national and global proportions. As almost all competitions stopped or were cancelled, the bettors found themselves with no option.

  This allowed for e-sports to gain more patronage among a wider global community while also seeing many big investors play big in the sector.

  In bookmakers’ event listings, for a long time there were e-sports event markets to bet on. For those who are unfamiliar, electronic sports competitions are mostly played in person (known as “on LAN”), however, you can play at a distance, over the internet (as used by all casual gamers at home ).

  As this was the only option, bettors went deeper into the subject and made the market explode.

  Now e-sports has grown into pop culture as well and more people are now familiar with what it is all about in the betting aspect as well. Integration into Hollywood events, real-life sports and many other facets of real life has further helped the course.

  For instance, Fortnite has grown to be more than just a game globally, with many football clubs and celebrities keying into this as well. Players like Mesut Ozil, Harry Kane and a musician in Drake have in one way or the other been linked to the game which has also helped in bringing more popularity to it.

  According to Insider intelligence estimates, there will be a total of 26.6 monthly viewers of e-sports in the United States in 2021. That tally makes for a significant 11.4% increase from 2020. This same estimation hints at 31.4 million monthly users by the year 2023. Just as in previous years, this estimation could come as ‘modest’ once again as there is a good chance these figures could well be under-estimated as it stands.

  As it stands, many factors point to the fact that the e-sports sector could be set for a positive trajectory over in the years to come. All of the predicted data so far seem to back the aforementioned statement.

  Growth of the E-sports sector will remain and get even better

  It’s been a while since life returned to normal in many countries and in a short time this should happen across the planet. Even so, the trend is that the growth of the e-sports betting market will continue.

  Different studies have a coincidence number: 13%, which corresponds to the estimate of the CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate). In short, it is one of the main indicators that show whether or not a market is worth investing in (and, in this case, too much).

  If the forecast comes true, with a CAGR of around 13% between 2021 and 2026, in five years the e-sports betting market should be worth no less than 18.5 billion dollars. Still in the wake of these numbers, analysts predict that in 2027, the value will reach 21 billion dollars.

  Even in the moment of “crisis” for sports betting, during 2020, those focused on e-sports surfed well. According to the UK Gambling Commission, one of Organs most important agencies in the sector in the world, the e-sports betting market grew 2.992% from 2019 to 2020.

  E-sports has grown to be more than just a ‘hobby’

  Before the pandemic, it was estimated that there were 170 million e-sports fans, people who closely follow one or another professional scene and who consume the things that market offers. In a year, until the end of 2020, studies point to an increase in this number, which reached the mark of 250 million people.

  Games like Fortnite, Counterstrike, Dota2, Overwatch, League of Legends and Global Offensive are now the most foremost games in the e-sports industry. Every bookmaker now seems to have almost all of these games in their sportsbook.

  In actual fact, e-sports has become more than just a recreational hobby but has even grown to become a profession for some. At the moments, lots of competitions are now being held which sees e-sports players from across the globe compete over a period of time for grand cash prizes.

  Take for instance Johan Sundstein, commonly known as ‘Notain’ who is the most popular e-sports player in the world. He grew his prominence from becoming an expert in the popular Dota2 game s. He started playing this since he was only 15. As at the latest rankings in 2021, Notain has earned about $7 million from e-sports alone and is currently the most popular player globally.

  As earlier mentioned, big brands are now happy to throw their cash in this and it has resulted to millions of viewers paying close attentions to live streams and watch diligently as they would watch a normal game of basketball, football or NFL.

  Just recently, Entain acquired popular esports betting company, Unikrn for about £50m in what was an example of how valuable e-sports companies have now become in the modern day.

  This means more audiences at championships, more audiences in the arenas watching competitions, more people buying team products and more players investing their bankrolls in e-sports events.

  One of the reasons that drove this is the professionalization of teams and players. Not long ago, CS:GO (Counter-Strike: Global Offensive), one of the world’s top e-sports games, saw a major match-fixing scandal involving one of the biggest teams in the US at the time.

  This caused the sports betting market not to take e-sports seriously, so much so that it took time for the offers at various bookmakers to increase. Today, there are lots and lots of titles available to bet with a series of markets on each of them.

  The future is promising and has already caught the attention of Las Vegas, for example. Luxor Casino, for example, announced that it will build an exclusive arena for e-sports events in the city. Experts think other big casinos should do the same.

  Another point that has been helping a lot in the growth of the e-sports betting market are the regulatory agencies that are starting to pay specific attention to the topic and treat it as something different from conventional sports.

  New games should emerge and heat up the market

  At the end of the first half of 2020, Valorant was launched, a tactical first-person shooter from Riot, the same developer and publisher of the successful League of Legends. It didn’t take long for the game to turn fever and in a few months it already had a robust community, with championships, large organizations hiring experienced players and young talents that were emerging.

  

  This is perhaps the greatest example of how the world of e-sports is fast-paced and asking for space to expand. As the pandemic also helped to form or reactivate the gaming streak of older people who were not already in this world, the developers had an excellent year.

  This becomes an incentive for new titles to appear and the chance of getting great acceptance like Valorant is great. With more games available to the public, more people are starting to enter this world and bigger are the gamblers that fatten the e-sports betting market.

  There is a lot of potential to be realized from the e-sports industry and it would be interesting to see how this sector grows in the nearest future and in years to come.

  

  O conteúdo E-sports betting market expected to reach 18 billion dollars in 2026 aparece primeiro em Sambafoot.

• Gabigol bags hatrick as five-star Flamengo thrash Bahia
  

  Flamengo raced to a thumping 5-0 victory over Bahia at Pituaçu on Sunday. Gabigol was the star with a hatrick on the day, while Pedro and Vitinho both came from the bench to complete the rout.

  Renato Gaucho secured his second victory in the Brazilian Championship after overseeing a 1-0 victory over Defensa y Justicia in his first game in charge last week.

  The visitors pressed aggressively from the start, while Bahia sat back in search of a counterattack, but struggled to defend.

  The game came alive in the 23rd minute, when Flamengo were awarded a penalty for a foul by Nino Paraba on Arrascaeta. Gabigol converted beautifully to put Flamengo ahead. The star forward grabbed his second after receiving an assist from Isla in the area in the 41st minute.

  Flamengo should have wrapped up the game easily in the first half, but Michael, Everton Ribeiro, Diego, and Isla all wasted clear-cut chances, leaving the game at 2 nil after 45 minutes.

  In the second half, Bahia got off to a flying start, with Gilberto missing two chances to reduce the deficit and Matheus Galdezani striking the crossbar.

  Gabigol, on the other hand, scored the visitor’s third goal in the 62nd minute, completing his hat trick.

  Matheus Peixoto made numerous additional saves, but he couldn’t stop Pedro’s effort, as the substitute who replaced Gabigol in the front scored the game’s fourth goal.

  Vitinho, who assisted on the fourth goal, made the transition from provider to scorer in the 85th minute, making it 5-0.

  

  In the next round, Bahia will face Atlético-MG at Mineiro on Sunday, while Flamengo will face Sao Paulo at Maracana.

  Rubro-Negro will then meet Argentina’s Defensa y Justicia for the second leg of their Libertadores round of 16 matchup at Maracana on Wednesday.

  O conteúdo Gabigol bags hatrick as five-star Flamengo thrash Bahia aparece primeiro em Sambafoot.

• Preview: Brazil vs Germany – Olympic Games
  

  With the disappointment from the Copa America still fresh in their minds, can Brazil go all the way in the Olympics once again? Well, there is a positive chance they can do just that.

  Brazil come into this competition defending their crown, after winning the last edition played on home soil in Rio de Janeiro.

  To start their competition, they couldn’t have gotten a better opponent than Germany, the same team they beat on penalties to win the tournament back in 2016.

  Brazil already know what it is like to beat their opponents and they’ll surely be favorites ahead of this one. The crunch fixture is scheduled for Thursday at the International Stadium Yokohama, Yokohama.

  Brazil are used to sending their best possible U-23 squad to the Olympics, something that explains the South American giants hold this competition in high regard.

  Brazil form

  They come into this game, having come from behind to beat the United Arab Emirates 5-2 in their last friendly before the competition proper. Taking that game into account, Brazil were not at their best, despite the scoreline. However, they were clinical enough when it mattered and boasting that attribute could come in handy in the course of the tournament. Matheus Cunha was the star of the day, having bagged a late brace.

  Prior to that game, they won Serbia via a 3-0 scoreline, with Pedro also grabbing a brace as well.

  Having won gold on home soil in Rio 2016, Brazil will be eager to defend their crown in Tokyo. They boast a squad featuring a host of talented names. Experience couldn’t have come better with the likes of Diego Carlos and Dani Alves as two of their over-aged players. The latter is the oldest player to play in the competition this time around and is easily the most experienced name across all teams.

  Elsewhere, the likes of Richarlison, Douglas Luiz, Gabriel Martinelli and Antony are also the squad that has so much talent and firepower on paper.

  O conteúdo Preview: Brazil vs Germany – Olympic Games aparece primeiro em Sambafoot.

• Is Brazilian football getting outdated and overrated?
  

  Recently, the Brazilian team finished as runners-up at Copa América, losing to Argentina in the final. At the time, Tite, for the first time in history, suffered a defeat at home and precisely to his biggest rival.

  With the coach from Rio Grande do Sul, the team is not thrilled and has suffered a Neymar-dependence since 2011. However, in the tournament Lucas Paquetá was another name to stand out.

  In the game, tactically, Brazil were dominated. Their biggest rival executed the high mark, destabilizing the defensive moment of Brazil. The Argentine side took advantage of this, with Angèl Di Maria giving the goalkeeper no chance with a lob.

  Olympic team in the same direction?

  The Olympic team said goodbye to the preparatory friendlies, winning via a 5-2 scoreline, against the United Arab Emirates. Despite a brace from Matheus Cunha, the game showed difficulty during the first 45 minutes.

  Tactically, Brazil had a solid defense and pressed well but their passing fell short on a number of occasions.

  Nervousness or not, the players missed fundamentals and André Jardine’s squad proved ineffective. Whether or not Brazil will win the Tokyo Olympics is another story. However, the difficulty of imposing both the main team and the base is a matter of concern.

  Brazilian football needs to review a few pages and understand that some things that worked in the past, today they don’t work anymore.

  Brazil will compete in the Olympic group stage with Germany, Côte d’Ivoire and Saudi Arabia. The first match is against Germany this Thursday (22), in the rematch of the Maracanã final of the last Olympic Games. That game will to an extent show Brazil’s intent in the competition.

  O conteúdo Is Brazilian football getting outdated and overrated? aparece primeiro em Sambafoot.

• Gremio grab their first league win of the season against Fluminense
  

  A late penalty goal against Fluminense away from home, saw Grêmio win back-to-back games for the first time in 11 games on Saturday night.  It was also the first league win for Tricolor in what has been a difficult campaign so far.

  Pinares scored the match-winning goal in the 90th minute after it appeared that Calegari had knocked Alisson down. Despite the fact that the initial contact happened outside of the Flu goal area, the spot kick was granted after consultation with the VAR, giving the visitors a 1-0 victory.

  For the first 45 minutes, goalkeepers Muriel and Gabriel Chapecó were mostly bystanders. Grêmio, more concerned with defending, gave the ball possession to Fluminense and retreated. As a result, the hosts dominated possession but lacked inventiveness in attack.

  Diego Souza had a wonderful chance to put his team ahead just before the break when he leaped higher than the Flu defenders following a corner kick, but his effort went wide.

  Kannemann was issued a yellow card a few seconds after the break for pulling down Calegari. Not long after, Vanderson’s powerful attempt in the 55th minute hit the crossbar for Grêmio. Four minutes later, Luccas Claro responded as he stamped Gabriel Chapecó’s post following a corner kick.

  The game moved slowly, with numerous fouls and overhead balls, culminating with Calegari pulling down Alisson in the penalty box in the 90th minute following a defensive blunder.

  The referee however, ruled a foul outside the area, but upon consulting the VAR, reversed his decision and awarded the penalty which resulted to Grêmio winning their second game in a row under new management of Scolari.

  Under the new veteran manager, the club has looked better in their last two games and signs of progress have been evident, which could come as a relief for the club and fans alike.

  For their next outing, Grêmio will take to the pitch for another league game, hosting América-MG at the Arena on Saturday. Flu will also take on Palmeiras at Allianz Parque on the same day.

  O conteúdo Gremio grab their first league win of the season against Fluminense aparece primeiro em Sambafoot.

• Matheus Cunha shines in Brazil’s final friendly before the Olympics
  

  The 5-2 score line may not accurately reflect the game, but Brazil fought hard to defeat the UAE in Novi Sad, Serbia, on Wednesday. Matheus Cunha’s quick-fire brace help put the game beyond doubt for Brazil in the seven-goal thriller.

  André Jardine’s team fell behind to an own goal by Nino in the 21st minute of their final friendly match before getting back level with Diego Carlos’s header just before halftime.

  The second half was a rollercoaster, with UAE regaining the lead 22 minutes in. In the span of six minutes, Brazil then scored three goals, before completing the rout late in the game.

  Reinier, Cunha (who scored a brace), and Arsenal star Gabriel Martinelli all scored goals for Brazil. UAE’s second goal was scored by Abdulla Alnaqbi.

  The Olympic team will fly to Tokyo on Friday morning. Richarlison and Douglas Luiz, who played for Brazil in the Copa América, joined the Olympic group on Thursday but did not participate in the match. So far, only Malcolm has remained silent. On the 18th, the Zenit striker will arrive in the Olympic city after being granted a last-minute release.

  Brazil will compete in the Olympic group stage against Germany, Côte d’Ivoire, and Saudi Arabia. The first match is against Germany on Thursday, in a rematch of the Maracana final from the last Olympic Games.

  Brazil Olympic Games Fixture list

  Thursday, July 22nd – Brazil vs. Germany – 8:30 a.m. (Brasilia) – Yokohama Stadium,

  Sunday, July 25 – Ivory Coast vs. Brazil – 5:30 a.m. – Yokohama Stadium – Brazil vs. Saudi Arabia,

  Wednesday, July 28 – Brazil vs. Saudi Arabia – 5 a.m. Saitama Stadium, Japan (Miyagi).

  O conteúdo Matheus Cunha shines in Brazil’s final friendly before the Olympics aparece primeiro em Sambafoot.

• Can Pia Sundhage lead Brazil women to an Olympic gold medal?
  

  Brazil arrives at the Tokyo Olympic Games with real chances for a medal in both men’s and women’s football. Only once in history have the two teams been on the podium at the same Olympics. This was in Beijing 2008, when the men won silver and the women won bronze. At Rio 2016, men were champions, and women were fourth.

  The Olympic cycle for the women’s team was one of ups and downs, with changes in coaches and a ninth place in the World Cup after an overtime elimination for France, which hosted the host. At the moment, optimism hovers in the selection, especially after the arrival of Swedish coach Pia Sundhage, who boats a lot of experience with three Olympic medals.

  Taking the results of the Olympic cycle, the American team again appears as the favorite, followed closely by three very strong European teams: Sweden, Great Britain and Holland. Brazil appears in the fight for the medals. In recent months, Brazil faced the USA, lost 2-0, but showed good football in the victories over Canada (2-0) and a 3-0 win over Russia.

  Is the women’s soccer team favorite? No. But of course there are real chances for the podium and even gold, mainly due to the talent of the players and the obedience and tactical confidence of the team in the coach.

  The biggest decision made by Sundhage was perhaps the one to leave out veteran forward Cristiane from her squad. This will be the first time since 2004 that the trio Marta, Formiga and Cristiane will not be together on the field at the Olympic Games. Regardless, the women’s team can still fancy their chances of winning.

  Brazil are trying, for the second time in history, to go to the podium twice in the same football Olympics. Only time will tell what becomes of those ambitions.

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