Mauro Silva (São Paulo, 1968) is a pioneer. World Champion with Brazil in 1994 and a historical legend of Deportivo, chose a path that very few former players have dared to take in their country: being a leader. And if there are hardly any ex-footballers in management positions in clubs and federations in Brazil, a black man then, it was unheard of.
Elected vice president of the Paulista Federation (FPF), Mauro is the first and only black leader of Brazilian soccer. One of his missions as a manager is to show that football can be plural. That there is space for everyone. In this way, has assembled a team where diversity rules. Where women have an unprecedented role and responsibility.
Within the framework of Leadership Women Football E-Congress, forum that is a benchmark for women's leadership in football, the legend canarinha spoke with AS – official media of the congress – about diversity and inclusion in society.
She will be proud of the work they are doing with women's football in the FPF …
It is a joy to see the transformation of women's football and the greater presence of women. We treat women's football in exactly the same way as men's. It should not be otherwise. We are an example of diversity. I am a black leader. Aline Pellegrino, our former director who went to coordinate the CBF, is a woman and black. We have eight women in senior management positions in the FPF, including the president of the arbitration commission, Ana Paula Oliveira, and the director of competitions, Cristina Abreu. Society loses when there are no opportunities for everyone. Soccer would be better with more plurality.
This is your flag from the beginning as a leader …
The FPF was the first federation to create the women's football department. I remember when I met Aline Pellegrino in the management course at the CBF in 2016. We would meet to discuss what to do. And now we see where we have arrived with women's football. We have three times as many players registered. In 2016 there were only three women occupying positions in technical commissions and today there are 45. We had no sponsors and today we have four. We went from having one game on television to 170 in 2019 and we just shut down with Facebook to broadcast all the games this season.
Why is it so difficult to promote diversity in football?
It is necessary to end prejudice, break paradigms. We do a daily work with the social and neighborhood clubs, so that they have women's teams. Brazil is a country where there is a historical prejudice against women in soccer. Few families encouraged their daughters to play. Women were prohibited from gambling for four decades. That has left a structural delay in the mentality of society. Now it's time to try to make up for lost time and Aline's arrival at the CBF will help this work to generate a national impact.
Ronaldo and Mauro Silva, in the final of the 2019 Paulistão Femenino.
RBCORSI (Journal AS)
You can speak of plurality because you are the only black leader in Brazil …
Three centuries of slavery left very deep marks on Brazilian society. But racism is a global problem. It is a structural problem of our society. It is a vicious circle that is directly related to social inequality. Blacks live in poorer areas, with worse schools, worse jobs, fewer opportunities. If in a 100-meter race you come out 30, 40 meters behind, you're never going to finish first. There are no public policies for social insertion and thus we live in a very vulnerable situation. Policies are needed to change this landscape from below. It is not demagoguery, it is reality. We need to invest in a fairer world. With equal opportunities and for all. That is why it is so important to talk about racism, about machismo. That we have congresses and discussion tables. So that we move forward as a society in a more just and inclusive world.
There are very few former players who, like you, become leaders in Brazil. Why does it count so much that an ex-footballer comes to rule in our country?
I think the natural transition that everyone sees is for the technical area. From player to coach. But we are seeing more and more athletes realizing that there are other opportunities. In the press, for example, as commentators and presenters. But it seems that the last barrier is management. Mainly from federations, organizations that govern football. The player will only be able to put into practice the changes he wants at the moment he comes to power. We have to occupy this space, but we have to be prepared. You have to study a lot and go up one step at a time.
Have you been a victim of racism during your career?
I only had one experience. A match in Tenerife, just when I arrived in Spain. When I touched the ball I heard the strange noise from the stands. It was the only experience with racism that I had in my entire career. That is minority behavior. There is a street with my name in Coruña. I feel enormous affection whenever I go to Spain. What worries me is when it generalizes. There are racist people. That is why it is important that the law is upheld and that there are harsh punishments against racism. I like that the subject is being talked about more today. On how racism is bad for society. Look what happened with Neymar. No one accepts quietly when they are the victim of this type of behavior. There is outrage. The press gives more visibility. This is very important for us to have a more diverse, more plural society. The myth of racial democracy that exists in Brazil, mainly, greatly damaged the fight for equality. There is much to improve in this regard.
Does soccer have a problem with racism?
Football, no. The society. Racism is a structural problem in society. And that reflects in football a reality that exists in life. Sometimes you arrive at a luxury hotel, a restaurant, and they think you are the driver, the bodyguard. Because it is not an environment made so that you are not there. And people see it as something natural, that this kind of thing happens. As in football, when they come up with the excuse that anything goes in football, that an insult is part of the culture, it is not racism. Soccer is a reflection of society. But it is important that we use football as an educational tool. Of awareness.
And machismo? Would football, as we know it today, accept a woman as the leader of a great federation?
I think the discussion should be the preparation. The capacity of the manager. It would have to matter whether he was black or white, male or female. What should matter is whether you are a prepared person or not. This is how we do at the FPF. We have incredible professionals in positions of high responsibility who are women. Mislaine Scarelli, vice president of corporate management, Ana Lorena Marche, our coordinator. They are there because it is a matter of capacity.
Speaking now of his work as a leader during the pandemic. What has been the biggest challenge in these months that we were without competition?
It was very difficult. I saw many players, coaches, friends suffering a lot. Because you already know that football is not Real Madrid and Barcelona, Corinthians or Palmeiras. Great clubs of the elite. That is a very small percentage. The vast majority of soccer professionals need their salary to survive, to make ends meet. I have seen captains of teams of Second B, Third, who were washing cars, working as a bricklayer, to be able to pay the bills. We did campaigns to try to raise funds to help the people of modest football.
AS, official media of the Leadership Women E-Congress
The Leadership Women Football E-Congress 2020 starts today, international congress on women's leadership in soccer. As it did in 2019, Diario AS is once again the official medium of this forum, which is a benchmark for women's leadership in football. Today and tomorrow, on a virtual basis, some of the most influential voices in women's football, such as Sarai Bareman, Director of FIFA, or Pia Sundhage, two-time Olympic champion of the USA and current Brazil coach, will be gathered at an event that discuss an inclusive vision of gender equality, where men and women collaborate in improving society through sport.