Why is football in Latin America so complex?
Money-grubbing and regulatory capture explain its Byzantine leagues
LATIN AMERICA is a football powerhouse. Its teams include Argentina (the current men’s world champions) and Brazil (the most successful national team in history). Yet if the region plays football with beauty and elegance, its league systems are achingly complex. Latin American competitions, now in full swing, can be more confusing than the offside rule.
This article appeared in the The Americas section of the print edition under the headline “Everyone’s a winner”
From the October 5th 2024 edition
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents
Explore the editionDiscover more
Entrevista con Javier Milei, presidente de Argentina
Transcripción de su encuentro con nuestro corresponsal
An interview with Javier Milei, Argentina’s president
A transcript of his meeting with our journalist
Mexico and Canada brace for Donald Trump’s tariff thrashing
Mexico’s Claudia Sheinbaum and Canada’s Justin Trudeau are taking different approaches to looming trade war
Javier Milei, free-market revolutionary
Argentina’s president explains how he has overturned the old economic order
Is Uruguay too stable for its own good?
The new president must deal with serious problems with growth, education and crime
Bolsonaro’s bid to regain Brazil’s presidency may end in prison
Brazilian police have accused some of his backers of involvement not just in a coup, but in an assassination plot