São Paulo join Flamengo vs artificial turf, criticise Rio ally over Libra | OneFootball

In this hectic and turbulent week for São Paulo, the club once again expressed its preference for natural grass in stadiums, absolutely against synthetic turf, aligning itself with Flamengo, which shares the same stance. However, the Tricolor found a way to also jab at the Rio rival regarding the controversy that blocked funds for the Libra clubs.

At the launch event of the 2026 Paulista Championship, the Tricolor's football director, Carlos Belmonte, reiterated the club's position on the matter.

“São Paulo is against synthetic turf. It would even be easier for shows, but as a matter of principle, we are against synthetic turf and believe that football should be played on natural grass,” said the director, aligning with Flamengo, which is also directly opposing synthetic turfs in Brazil.

However, as the famous saying goes, friends are friends, business is business. Without letting the friendship with the Rio club flourish too much, São Paulo issued an official statement this Wednesday (12th) celebrating the court decision that unblocks R$ 66 million for the Libra clubs, after the amount was blocked by Flamengo through an injunction obtained in the TJ-RJ.

Read the Tricolor's statement in full:

“This week's decision goes beyond judicial recognition: it confirms that LiBRA is on the right path and restores normalcy within the Association's environment. The unblocking of the R$ 66 million, disproportionately retained, brings relief to the cash flow and planning for everyone in this final stretch of the Brazilian Championship, and clearly demonstrates that the attempt to financially suffocate the other Clubs in the Association was a strategy chosen by the Rio club that did not succeed.

It is also clear and evident, in the text of the decision, that Flamengo never presented any calculation identifying, in the appeal petition, the amount the club believed it was entitled to. This, in itself and obviously, justified the favorable decision for the LiBRA Clubs.

Since its origin and formation, LiBRA has prioritized dialogue and collective understanding among its members with the aim of supporting and developing the best of Brazilian football for everyone. It was never the entity's intention, at any time, to make public matters that should be maintained and debated with balance and serenity within the protected, technical, and appropriate environment of Committees, Meetings, and Assemblies.

After Flamengo's decision to litigate its claim, Libra strictly followed the process, respected the confidentiality requested expressly by the Club, and handled the evidence technically in the correct scope, always seeking exclusively to clarify the facts and appropriately address the issue.

Libra's purpose has never changed: to build a model for the future of Brazilian football. More fair, sustainable, and professional. The excellent decision by the Rio de Janeiro Court of Justice, and Judge Lúcia Helena Passos, reinforces that what is at stake is not a clash between clubs, but the institutional strengthening of our football and the entire business chain it involves. It is important to reaffirm that the decision does not address the merits and, therefore, there is no recognition regarding the scenarios exposed and treated. This will only be the subject of any discussion through a competent arbitration procedure.

We remain convinced that for evolution to occur, it is absolutely essential to have stability and trust in institutions, leaderships, entities, and Clubs. It is not through confrontation that advances are made in an association. Innovation and development require openness to constant dialogue, respect for conduct rules and peers, understanding of any and all demands posed by each of the Clubs, and governance so that decisions are made with support.

LiBRA remains strong, continues in its intention to represent the Clubs in forming the much-dreamed National League, maintains its alignments with the LFU, and always believes that together we are much greater and better.”

TRICOLOR VS FLAMENGO

After the action filed by Flamengo, São Paulo criticized the rival through an official statement issued at the end of September, where it repudiated the conduct of the Rio club, which breached an agreement with Libra regarding payment of quotas.

In its manifesto, the Tricolor attacked the current management of the rival, criticizing the attitude for not honoring already established contracts, saying it is not ‘consistent with its grand past’ and has the ‘intention of financially hindering Brazilian football’ by blocking funds that the clubs had already planned for.

“The current management of Flamengo seems not to understand that it is responsible for the inherited contracts. After all, the enormous history of the Rio club was built over the years, not by the current leaders.

We trust that the Rio de Janeiro Justice will know how to evaluate the attitude of the Rio club correctly and impartially,” São Paulo concluded in its statement of aversion issued.

A few days later, the Tricolor released a new official statement (check it here) repudiating and debunking various falsehoods that the Rio club has been spreading.

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