Brazil will enter the World Cup season still politically polarized and with mixed feelings towards its national football team | Art by Global Voices The starkly polarised presidential election that ended with leftist former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva winning Brazil's presidency over far-right incumbent Jair Bolsonaro spilled over from the political arena onto the football field, with famous footballers, active and retired, weighing in on the candidates. Stars such as Neymar Jr, Juninho Pernambucano, and the 1994 World Champions Romário and Bebeto expressed their support for their preferred candidate, with some even engaging in the campaigns and intertwining football and politics ahead of the Qatar World Cup. The relationship of many Brazilians with the national team and its jersey has been mixed for a while now — the classic yellow uniform became a symbol associated with the right and far-right and was linked to antidemocratic acts taking place after the election, nurturing a false narrative about errors in the electoral system. In the country that used to call itself “football’s country,” where the game is considered a national passion, Brazilian footballers often seems more and more aligned to the right politically — which, in today's scenario, means Bolsonaro. In an interview with the AFP, historian João Malaia says this profile expresses the growth the right, especially the far-right, has achieved in Brazil recently. He suggests that as many players become millionaires overnight, they begin to identify with the right's discourse, despite their humble origins. He explains Bolsonaro's rhetoric “is very much lined up in the individual success, in each one's own capacity to overcome all of their difficulties. And when you look at a football player's trajectory, they are an example of the said speech.” Football and politics have long been strange bedfellows across the world. Dating all the way back to the second World Cup in 1934, Italy was under a fascist regime that used the tournament to win favor among its citizenry. In 2018, Russia hosted the World Cup, with critics noting the tournament was used for propaganda by the Putin government. And this is especially evident in the South American state of Brazil. Dating as far back as 1970, the then military government led by President Emillio G. Medici imposed its role in the national team’s training and selection — with the selecao winning a third title in 12 years. Antifascist movements among fans have also marked position in the last years, echoing other groups from the past. Corinthians, the only major league team to congratulate Lula for the election, based in São Paulo, was behind a 1982 movement called Democracia Corinthiana (Corinthians’ Democracy), led by players such as Socrates, Casagrande, among others. They represented a political force that sought to end the military-led dictatorship, emphasizing the relationship between football and politics. Using its influence, it rallied supporters of the club and preferred presidential candidates. Bolsonaro has used football during his term as a tool to show himself as a regular guy, just like everyone else. Despite declaring himself a Palmeiras's fan, he often poses using other Brazilian teams’ shirts, even rivals, and shows up to stadiums to watch matches. But he also got closer to current and former players during his government. Neymar da Silva Santos Junior, popularly known as Neymar, is perhaps the best example. Neymar, who currently plays for Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) in France, reinforced his support for Bolsonaro last September and supported his campaign on social media. Some linked the support to Neymar's debt issues with Brazil’s IRS. Neymar's father met with Bolsonaro and the Economy minister Paulo Guedes back in 2019 to discuss the matter. The current president denied pardoning the athlete, but among fans who opposed Bolsonaro the chant “hey, Neymar, you'll have to declare it” became popular in the last days of the campaign. Thiago Silva, who plays for Chelsea in the English Premier League, also used social networks to declare his support for Bolsonaro, sharing messages parallel to Bolsonaro’s campaign slogans. God, country, family and freedom.I hope that democracy is respected and that everyone can exercise their citizenship freely. Another famed player in Brazil, Daniel Alves, used the slogan on his Instagram page: A post shared by Daniel Alves (@danialves) Rivaldo, a champion with the national team in the Japan-South Korea 2002 World Cup, also used social media to support the pro-Bolsonaro vote: @jairmessiasbolsonaro 22 “Os pecados de uma nação fazem mudar sempre os seus governantes, mas a ordem se mantém com um líder sábio e sensato.