Placar
Encyclopedia
Placar is a monthly Brazilian sports magazine. Its first edition was issued on March 20, 1970, and since then the it has become the most successful sports publication in Brazil, even though it focuses fully on football (soccer)
. It is published by Grupo Abril
.
, in order to fill the void of a national publication about the sport, and Pelé
was featured on the cover of the first edition, which sold almost 200,000 copies. The magazine defended the modernization of the administration of Brazilian soccer, and on issues number 23 and 24, in 1970, a series of articles by Michel Laurence and Narciso James proposed many changes, among them the creation of a forsooth national championship, which would be created in 1971.
In 1977, Placar defended the creation of a second division for the Brazilian championship and, ten years later, supported the creation of Copa União
— the magazine even supplied the trophy that was presented to the champion.
Sales were sustained mostly by the same soccer lottery that later would be target of an investigation by the magazine. With tips and collective bets, in 1972 Placar sold 250,000 copies one week because of an article about the lottery.
and asked to see the winning tickets, but was denied with an allegation of bank secrecy.
In the same year, Milton left Abril, and Kfouri was promoted to his post. Still suspecting about the lottery, every end of month he incited the newsroom, to no avail: "Who is man enough to uncover the unfairness of the soccer lottery?" During another trip to Brasília, he asked again to see the winning tickets. This time, some were showed: "One put a triple bet in games other people would try to guess," Kfouri told later. "Corinthians
x Juventus
, triple. Flamengo
x Olaria
, triple. Vasco
x Botafogo
, Vasco. Atlético-PR
x Coritiba
, Coritiba. Inter
x Livramento, triple. It's not possible. They play the triple bet in easy games and simple bets in hard ones. There's something strange here."
When he remarks his suspicions at the newsroom the next day, a volunteer was found: Sérgio Martins. Kfouri gave him a one-year deadline, and, on the October 22, 1982 edition an extensive report was published, with denunciations of corruption and result manipulation. None of the 125 cited, among players, brass, referees, coaches and personalities, was arrested. Lottery lost credibility, and it never recovered. By destiny's irony, Placar sales also floundered, since many bought the magazine especially because of its lottery analysis.
, but later, gradually, it was extended to other tournaments. With stagnated sales numbers since 1985, another effort was made in 1988, with a bigger format, less pages and a cheaper paper, in a phase known as Placar Mais. In the outset, it became Abril's best-selling magazine, even though it turned a loss if too many copies were sold, hence a limit was set.
The good times didn't last long, though, since the magazine never sold much ad pages. The fatal blow came with the Brazilian flop in the 1990 World Cup, that was aggravated by the terrible campaigns of the bigger teams in the 1990 Paulista League (small clubs Bragantino
and Novorizontino
made the finals that year) and the controversial finals of the Carioca League (the title was decided in the courts). Placar always turned a profit with commemorative editions of titles, but that year this option wasn't available, and Abril decided to stop investing in a weekly soccer magazine.
After years of bad results (between 1979 and 1995, the magazine's results were in the black for just three years), cuts were made in the newsroom, and the magazine was no longer published weekly. Just one year earlier, the letter from the editor of the 1,000th issue stated that Placar reached that milestone "healthy" and with average sales of 127,000 copies.
The success of that edition made Kfouri propose that Abril kept a line of tematic magazines with a small newsroom. Abril approved the idea, as long as there was no periodicity, but the timetable for 1991 called for 12 issues. "We made the 12," recalled Kfouri. "No one mentioned the magazine as Placar, Abril's monthly soccer magazine', but it was a fact that it was monthly. And its results began to live in the black ink." The only months when there was no numbered editions were December 1993, July 1994, August 1994 and February 1995. The magazine maintained its critic position of the Brazilian soccer brass, which made the president of Federação Paulista de Futebol
, Eduardo José Farah, deny the publication's photographers entrance on the field for the 1991 Brazilian League finals, between Bragantino and São Paulo
, in Bragança Paulista
.
During the 1994 World Cup
, special editions were launched after every game the Brazilian national team played. They were produced directly in Brazil with inferior paper, but the sales, weak for the first edition, grew steadily after each game. Starting with the fourth special edition, the sales were satisfactory, and the commemorative edition after the title sold over 500,000 copies. The series produced a profit of 500,000 dollar
s.
This was the era when the magazine had its higher figure for a price: in August 1993, it cost 290,000 cruzeiros reais.
, one of the more famous art directors in the world. The first edition of the new phase sold 350,000 copies.
Just a few months later, Kfouri left Placar and Abril because of interferences by the brass with the magazine. To Abril, it was not interesting to denounce Brazilian soccer brass in a pullout that circulated with the monthly editions, because it feared for the TV contracts TVA
, also from Abril, had. Roberto Civita, Abril's president, offered Kfouri the name of the magazine for a price, since Placar didn't turn a profit and the publisher would also get rid of the possibility of being sued again, but the negotiations didn't go any further.
During the next few years, a few visual (such as yet another new format, to 22,6 cm x 29,9 cm, in 1996) and content (soccer once again was the main theme) adjustments were made. During the 1998 World Cup
, Placar again published special editions after each Brazilian game, but, this time, many professionals were sent to host country France
— even the page design was made there. The huge costs and the sagging sales (compared to the previous World Cup) made for a fiasco.
), combined with Abril's decision to keep just magazines that turned a large profit, ended another weekly run for Placar — just recently its results barely reached black ink. "Serious, strong soccer means a strong magazine," wrote the editor, Sérgio Xavier Filho, to a reader.
Once again, Placar was being published sporadically, albeit in a larger quantity than the previous "sporadic period", in 1990. Each special, even the simultaneous ones, was numbered. But in May 2003 the magazine was back to a monthly periodicity, and the specials no longer followed the numbering. In March 2008, an article about TV color man and former player Casagrande
's internment raised a controversy, with journalists defending and criticizing the magazine's posture.
is an annual award given by Placar to the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A
best players from each position. Each player is given a rating after every match they play. The players with highest average rating from each position are awarded the Bola de Prata. The player with highest average rating overall is awarded the Bola de Ouro.
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
. It is published by Grupo Abril
Grupo Abril
Grupo Abril is the second largest Brazilian media conglomerate with its headquarter in São Paulo. The group is the holding company of Editora Abril, who publishes the weekly newsmagazine Veja....
.
First weekly period
The magazine was published on a weekly basis throughout the 1970s and the 1980s, until August 1990. It was launched just before the 1970 World Cup1970 FIFA World Cup
The 1970 FIFA World Cup, the ninth staging of the World Cup, was held in Mexico, from 31 May to 21 June. The 1970 tournament was the first World Cup hosted in North America, and the first held outside South America and Europe. In a match-up of two-time World Cup champions, the final was won by...
, in order to fill the void of a national publication about the sport, and Pelé
Pelé
However, Pelé has always maintained that those are mistakes, that he was actually named Edson and that he was born on 23 October 1940.), best known by his nickname Pelé , is a retired Brazilian footballer. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest football players of all time...
was featured on the cover of the first edition, which sold almost 200,000 copies. The magazine defended the modernization of the administration of Brazilian soccer, and on issues number 23 and 24, in 1970, a series of articles by Michel Laurence and Narciso James proposed many changes, among them the creation of a forsooth national championship, which would be created in 1971.
In 1977, Placar defended the creation of a second division for the Brazilian championship and, ten years later, supported the creation of Copa União
Copa União
The Copa União was an one-off competition in Brazilian football, held in 1987 in the absence of the conventional CBF national championship.-Background:...
— the magazine even supplied the trophy that was presented to the champion.
Consolidation
In the very beginning, the sales were a success: it sold over 100,000 weekly copies during the 1970 World Cup. But, after the end of the tournament, sales dropped to an average of 40,000 copies. In order to reduce costs, in 1972 a pullout was created, starting with the number 131. Made with cheaper paper, it contained the "Tabelão", a listing of results and boxscores the magazine called "the Official Diary of Brazilian soccer". It also featured "fresher" news, such as the weekend games, while the magazine itself brought more timeless articles, such as profiles and columns about games from the previous week. The pullout was canceled by late 1974.Sales were sustained mostly by the same soccer lottery that later would be target of an investigation by the magazine. With tips and collective bets, in 1972 Placar sold 250,000 copies one week because of an article about the lottery.
"Soccer Lottery Mafia"
In 1979, Milton Coelho da Graça, then-director of Placar, explained to Juca Kfouri, then-director of special projects who handled the section about the soccer lottery, that he had been noticing some coincidences when few people won. Milton asked, and Kfouri went to BrasíliaBrasília
Brasília is the capital city of Brazil. The name is commonly spelled Brasilia in English. The city and its District are located in the Central-West region of the country, along a plateau known as Planalto Central. It has a population of about 2,557,000 as of the 2008 IBGE estimate, making it the...
and asked to see the winning tickets, but was denied with an allegation of bank secrecy.
In the same year, Milton left Abril, and Kfouri was promoted to his post. Still suspecting about the lottery, every end of month he incited the newsroom, to no avail: "Who is man enough to uncover the unfairness of the soccer lottery?" During another trip to Brasília, he asked again to see the winning tickets. This time, some were showed: "One put a triple bet in games other people would try to guess," Kfouri told later. "Corinthians
Sport Club Corinthians Paulista
Sport Club Corinthians Paulista, commonly just known as Corinthians , is a Brazilian football club based in the city of São Paulo. They play in the São Paulo state league, as well as the Brasileirão, Brazil's top national league...
x Juventus
Clube Atlético Juventus
The Clube Atlético Juventus , usually known simply as Juventus, is a Brazilian football club based in Mooca, a São Paulo neighborhood...
, triple. Flamengo
Clube de Regatas do Flamengo
Clube de Regatas do Flamengo , also known as Flamengo and familiarly as Mengão, is a Brazilian sports club based in the Flamengo bairro, Zona Sul, Rio de Janeiro, best known for its professional football team...
x Olaria
Olaria Atlético Clube
Olaria Atlético Clube, or Olaria as it is usually called, is a traditional Brazilian football team from Olaria neighborhood, Rio de Janeiro, in Rio de Janeiro state, founded on July 1, 1915...
, triple. Vasco
Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama
Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama |Rowing Club]]), usually known as Vasco da Gama or simply Vasco, is a famous and traditional Brazilian multisports club from Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, founded on August 21, 1898...
x Botafogo
Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas
Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas , also known as Botafogo and familiarly as Estrela Solitária, is a Brazilian sports club based in Botafogo, neighborhood of Rio de Janeiro, best known for its football team. They play in the Campeonato Carioca, Rio de Janeiro's state league, and the Campeonato...
, Vasco. Atlético-PR
Clube Atlético Paranaense
Clube Atlético Paranaense is a Brazilian football team from Curitiba in Paraná, founded on March 26, 1924. The club won the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A in 2001.-History:...
x Coritiba
Coritiba Foot Ball Club
Coritiba Foot Ball Club, commonly known as Coritiba, is a Brazilian football team from Curitiba, Paraná. It's the state's oldest football team and the best classified in the CBF and FIFA classifications. Coritiba has been champion in Paraná State for 35 times, more times than the sum of all the...
, Coritiba. Inter
Sport Club Internacional
Sport Club Internacional is a Brazilian football team and multi-sport club from Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, founded on April 4, 1909, and are one of the only five clubs to have never been relegated, along with Santos, São Paulo, Flamengo and Cruzeiro. They play in red shirts, white shorts and...
x Livramento, triple. It's not possible. They play the triple bet in easy games and simple bets in hard ones. There's something strange here."
When he remarks his suspicions at the newsroom the next day, a volunteer was found: Sérgio Martins. Kfouri gave him a one-year deadline, and, on the October 22, 1982 edition an extensive report was published, with denunciations of corruption and result manipulation. None of the 125 cited, among players, brass, referees, coaches and personalities, was arrested. Lottery lost credibility, and it never recovered. By destiny's irony, Placar sales also floundered, since many bought the magazine especially because of its lottery analysis.
End of weekly editions
Other efforts were made to try and reach new audiences, such as in 1984, when the magazine opened a larger room for sports other than soccer. The experience lasted from April to November, when the other sports, along with the slogan "All sports" ("Todos os esportes"), were dropped from the cover and started to receive less attention from the magazine. In September 1985, for the 800th edition, the traditional "Tabelão" section, with the listing of local boxscores and results from abroad, was removed because it was deemed too expensive. One year later, in September 1986, the section made its comeback after protests of over 600 readers, by mail and phone. At first, the section covered just the 1986 Brazilian LeagueCampeonato Brasileiro Série A 1986
-Overview:It was performed by 48 teams, including the four champions of the Série B and São Paulo won the championship.-Final standings:-Série A and Série B overall standings:-References:*...
, but later, gradually, it was extended to other tournaments. With stagnated sales numbers since 1985, another effort was made in 1988, with a bigger format, less pages and a cheaper paper, in a phase known as Placar Mais. In the outset, it became Abril's best-selling magazine, even though it turned a loss if too many copies were sold, hence a limit was set.
The good times didn't last long, though, since the magazine never sold much ad pages. The fatal blow came with the Brazilian flop in the 1990 World Cup, that was aggravated by the terrible campaigns of the bigger teams in the 1990 Paulista League (small clubs Bragantino
Clube Atlético Bragantino
Clube Atlético Bragantino, or Bragantino as they are usually called, is a Brazilian football team from Bragança Paulista in São Paulo that was founded on January 8, 1928....
and Novorizontino
Grêmio Esportivo Novorizontino
Grêmio Esportivo Novorizontino, usually known simply as Novorizontino was a Brazilian football club from Novo Horizonte, São Paulo state.- History :...
made the finals that year) and the controversial finals of the Carioca League (the title was decided in the courts). Placar always turned a profit with commemorative editions of titles, but that year this option wasn't available, and Abril decided to stop investing in a weekly soccer magazine.
After years of bad results (between 1979 and 1995, the magazine's results were in the black for just three years), cuts were made in the newsroom, and the magazine was no longer published weekly. Just one year earlier, the letter from the editor of the 1,000th issue stated that Placar reached that milestone "healthy" and with average sales of 127,000 copies.
Thematic editions
The last weekly edition was 1,051, despite the next issue's dateline of a week later. In the letter from the editor of that edition, Kfouri wrote that "every time the 'heating' of soccer justified it, Placar will be at the newsstands of the whole country with special editions", but that was almost the end of the magazine. The launch of the next issue, a special about Pelé's 50th birthday, was a huge success, with sales of 99,700 of the 100,000 copies that were printed. The special edition even earned Placar an Esso Prize, the third the magazine has won.The success of that edition made Kfouri propose that Abril kept a line of tematic magazines with a small newsroom. Abril approved the idea, as long as there was no periodicity, but the timetable for 1991 called for 12 issues. "We made the 12," recalled Kfouri. "No one mentioned the magazine as Placar, Abril's monthly soccer magazine', but it was a fact that it was monthly. And its results began to live in the black ink." The only months when there was no numbered editions were December 1993, July 1994, August 1994 and February 1995. The magazine maintained its critic position of the Brazilian soccer brass, which made the president of Federação Paulista de Futebol
Federação Paulista de Futebol
Federação Paulista de Futebol was founded on April 22, 1941 and manages all the official soccer tournaments within the state of São Paulo including the Campeonato Paulista, the Copa São Paulo de Juniores and the Copa Paulista de Futebol....
, Eduardo José Farah, deny the publication's photographers entrance on the field for the 1991 Brazilian League finals, between Bragantino and São Paulo
São Paulo Futebol Clube
São Paulo Futebol Clube , commonly known as São Paulo, is a professional football club based in São Paulo, Brazil. They play in the Campeonato Paulista, São Paulo's state league, and the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A or Brasileirão, Brazil's national league, and are one of the only five clubs to...
, in Bragança Paulista
Bragança Paulista
Bragança Paulista is a municipality in the state of São Paulo in Brazil. The population in 2005 is 139.740 and the area is 489 km². The elevation is 817 m....
.
During the 1994 World Cup
1994 FIFA World Cup
The 1994 FIFA World Cup, the 15th staging of the FIFA World Cup, was held in nine cities across the United States from June 17 to July 17, 1994. The United States was chosen as the host by FIFA on July 4, 1988...
, special editions were launched after every game the Brazilian national team played. They were produced directly in Brazil with inferior paper, but the sales, weak for the first edition, grew steadily after each game. Starting with the fourth special edition, the sales were satisfactory, and the commemorative edition after the title sold over 500,000 copies. The series produced a profit of 500,000 dollar
Dollar
The dollar is the name of the official currency of many countries, including Australia, Belize, Canada, Ecuador, El Salvador, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Singapore, Taiwan, and the United States.-Etymology:...
s.
This was the era when the magazine had its higher figure for a price: in August 1993, it cost 290,000 cruzeiros reais.
"Futebol, sexo e rock 'n roll"
The success generated by the 1994 World Cup editions and the Brazilian victory itself triggered big changes starting April 1995, just after the magazine celebrated its 25th anniversary. Those changes included the exits of every journalist of the newsroom, except Manoel Coelho and Paulo Vinicius Coelho. Approximately 1 million dollars were invested, with young adults as a target. The new slogan would be "Futebol, sexo e rock 'n roll" ("Soccer, Sex and Rock 'n Roll"). The format was also changed, to 27,5 cm x 35,8 cm, and, for the first time in its history, Placar sold subscriptions. The graphic project was signed by Roger BlackRoger Black
Roger Anthony Black MBE is a retired British athlete. During his athletics career, he won individual silver medals in the 400 metres sprint at both the Olympic Games and World Championships, two individual gold medals at the European Championships, and 4x400 metres relay gold medals at both the...
, one of the more famous art directors in the world. The first edition of the new phase sold 350,000 copies.
Just a few months later, Kfouri left Placar and Abril because of interferences by the brass with the magazine. To Abril, it was not interesting to denounce Brazilian soccer brass in a pullout that circulated with the monthly editions, because it feared for the TV contracts TVA
Televisão Abril
TVA - Televisão Abril is a Brazilian subscription television operator, working with Multichannel Multipoint Distribution Service analog system, analog cable and digital cable...
, also from Abril, had. Roberto Civita, Abril's president, offered Kfouri the name of the magazine for a price, since Placar didn't turn a profit and the publisher would also get rid of the possibility of being sued again, but the negotiations didn't go any further.
During the next few years, a few visual (such as yet another new format, to 22,6 cm x 29,9 cm, in 1996) and content (soccer once again was the main theme) adjustments were made. During the 1998 World Cup
1998 FIFA World Cup
The 1998 FIFA World Cup, the 16th FIFA World Cup, was held in France from 10 June to 12 July 1998. France was chosen as host nation by FIFA on 2 July 1992. The tournament was won by France, who beat Brazil 3-0 in the final...
, Placar again published special editions after each Brazilian game, but, this time, many professionals were sent to host country France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
— even the page design was made there. The huge costs and the sagging sales (compared to the previous World Cup) made for a fiasco.
Second weekly phase and current format
In March 2001 it was announced that once again Placar would be a weekly magazine, published every Friday from April 10. After a few months and complaints from readers that considered Friday too late in relation of the previous weekend's games, the released was pushed to Tuesdays, starting with the October 19 edition. However, the change was not enough to maintain the periodicity, which was weekly only until February 2002, when a crisis in Brazilian soccer (with investigations and a last-minute qualifying to the 2002 World Cup2002 FIFA World Cup
The 2002 FIFA World Cup was the 17th staging of the FIFA World Cup, held in South Korea and Japan from 31 May to 30 June. It was also the first World Cup held in Asia, and the last in which the golden goal rule was implemented. Brazil won the tournament for a record fifth time, beating Germany 2–0...
), combined with Abril's decision to keep just magazines that turned a large profit, ended another weekly run for Placar — just recently its results barely reached black ink. "Serious, strong soccer means a strong magazine," wrote the editor, Sérgio Xavier Filho, to a reader.
Once again, Placar was being published sporadically, albeit in a larger quantity than the previous "sporadic period", in 1990. Each special, even the simultaneous ones, was numbered. But in May 2003 the magazine was back to a monthly periodicity, and the specials no longer followed the numbering. In March 2008, an article about TV color man and former player Casagrande
Walter Casagrande
Wálter Casagrande Jr., usually known as Casagrande was a former football player in striker role, who currently is a famous TV commentator for Rede Globo....
's internment raised a controversy, with journalists defending and criticizing the magazine's posture.
Bola de Prata
Bola de PrataBola de Ouro
The Bola de Ouro is an award given each year, since 1973, by the authoritative Brazilian magazine Placar to the best player in the Brazilian National Championship. It is practically the equivalent to a Footballer of the Year award...
is an annual award given by Placar to the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A
Campeonato Brasileiro Série A
The Campeonato Brasileiro de Clubes da Série A , popularly known as the Brasileirão , is a professional football league at the top of the Brazilian football league system held annually since 1959. Contested by twenty clubs, it operates a system of promotion and relegation with the Série B...
best players from each position. Each player is given a rating after every match they play. The players with highest average rating from each position are awarded the Bola de Prata. The player with highest average rating overall is awarded the Bola de Ouro.