Casares keeps camera off in council meeting, Belmonte absent | OneFootball

Amid the political chaos experienced by São Paulo, the club's Deliberative Council meeting, held on the evening of this Monday (9/30), became a central topic.

It was noteworthy that President Júlio Casares not only participated in the meeting virtually but did so without turning on his camera, defying the call's directive: “During the entire duration of the meeting, the council member's equipment must have the front camera enabled and unobstructed. Any council member who does not observe this rule will be removed from the virtual room.” (For someone who has violated the statute so many times, it's nothing new.)

Thus, once again, he didn't have to face anyone during this bad moment, remaining absent since the elimination in the Libertadores last Thursday, when he deleted the Stories he had posted before the game on Instagram and canceled commercial commitments the next day, fearing public exposure during the most difficult time of his administration. In the end, he made an involuntary appearance yesterday with the publication of his interview with ‘Sport Insider‘, but it was recorded a week earlier.

Returning to the Council meeting, it's also worth noting that the football director Carlos Belmonte Sobrinho was not present, apparently not even virtually. Whether this is related to the process of being sidelined that he has been experiencing, only he can say. If the absentees revealed much, those present said more than they should have.

Jayme Franco and Themístocles Almeida Júnior insisted on defending the club's indefensible financial situation, but it was Antônio Donizeti Gonçalves, known as Dedé, the general director of the social club, who exposed the disconnection of many of the executives from reality: “São Paulo has to choose. Either we win titles or we pay off debt. We have to win titles.” It's a statement that could be just an isolated fantasy, but it was said in the midst of a body supposedly responsible for overseeing and guiding the club's direction.

In modern football, titles do not oppose orderly finances; they are a consequence of them. São Paulo has been living off financial improvisations for over fifteen years, and the rare achievements reflect this instability. Dedé's suggestion is the usual recipe: spend without thinking about tomorrow, as at the beginning of Casares' term, when the scenario that now suffocates the budget was created. The result is a club that needs to discuss, in full 2025, how to survive financially.

Such delusional statements are also the reason the Council closes in on itself. If the meetings were broadcast, fans would see in real-time the level of alienation of those who should represent their interests. It's easier to make populist speeches when the audience is limited to a few peers. In front of millions, the sense of responsibility would be greater, and perhaps Dedé would hesitate before expressing a thought that, in practice, perpetuates the vicious circle in which São Paulo finds itself.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.