Return venue set: São Paulo take Athletico-PR clash to the countryside | OneFootball

São Paulo finally has its stadium set for the return of the Brasileirão. The team faces Athletico-PR on the 22nd, a Wednesday, but will not be able to use Morumbi, which has once again been lent out for a series of four concerts.

Cícero de Souza Marques Stadium, in Bragança Paulista (SP), was confirmed this Monday (6) by the CBF as the venue for the Tricolor’s home match in the 19th round of the Brazilian Championship against the team from Paraná, still scheduled for 9:30 p.m. (Brasília time).

As has been happening in recent seasons, Morumbi is frequently made available for performances by major international artists, following a partnership signed with Live Move. This time, British singer Harry Styles will perform four shows at São Paulo’s home ground between July 17 and 24.

This will be Tricolor’s second match at Cícero de Souza Marques in this Brasileirão. Earlier, they drew 2-2 with Bahia there on May 3. But Bragança was not the only place the team had to turn to after being left without a home.

Recently, São Paulo has also hosted matches in Campinas, at Canindé and Vila Belmiro. The choice of the inland stadium once again was due to the implementation of semi-automated offside technology at the venue, which the CBF intends to officially adopt starting from the 20th round of the national competition, after tests that will be carried out when the Brasileirão resumes.

Last Saturday (4), the group Nova Era Tricolor delivered a list of demands to president Harry Massis at São Paulo’s social club. Among the complaints was precisely the issue of the team using other stadiums when Morumbi is unavailable.

In a letter delivered to Massis, the protesters requested that whenever Morumbi is occupied by concerts, something that has frequently happened in recent years, the club prioritize home matches at stadiums in the city of São Paulo.

According to the complainants, holding matches in the interior of São Paulo state or on the coast considerably reduces the presence of Tricolor supporters, besides losing the “strength of Morumbi” and causing financial losses.

Bragança Paulista’s stadium had certainly already been chosen in advance for the team’s return to the pitch, and the demand will have to wait for next time — and there will certainly be many more. In October this year, more concerts are coming to São Paulo’s home ground.

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