Cruzeiro, Vasco da Gama, Gremio, Bahía, Sport Recife and Guaraní. Never has Serie B brought together so many Brazilian champions. The 2022 edition will count 14 national titles from these historic clubs and showcases the difficulties they face simply staying where they always were. It is an unprecedented escabechina in a new order of forces.
And the trend is here to stay, because only four of them (not counting that some ‘little one’ can sneak in) will get the promotion. Going down and going up the first time is not easy. Botafogo finished it, but Cruzeiro will pay his third year of penance in the silver category and Vasco da Gama is already in the second. The reduction in income makes everyone equal.
The multi-recurrence of declines among the historical ones is a trend: Vasco is the champion with four (2008, 2013, 2015 and 2020); Now, with three, they are followed by the Gremio (1991, 2004 and 2021) and the Botafogo (2002, 2014, and 2002) and with two is the Palmeiras (2002 and 2012).
Um @BrasileiraoB historic awaits us in 2022! pic.twitter.com/4DAZi0Yu1A
– Brasileirão Série B (@BrasileiraoB) December 10, 2021
The phrase “time grande não cai & rdquor; (large team does not fall) ceased to be a maxim, to become fuel for provocations and memes made from the torcedores of the Santos, the Flamengo and the Sao Paulo, the only three historical ones that did not pass through the B, the São Paulo Tricolor, however, it almost did not get into a mess.
THE TRAUMA OF THE GUILD
The Guild thing this last season It breaks the common denominator that explains the fragility of the greats: disastrous sports planning combined with extremely serious financial problems, which materialize in constant salary arrears. El Inmoral, on the other hand, economically structured, paid well and up to date for the entire course and had a competitive staff, in which Douglas costa It was the icing on the cake to qualify for the titles. His shameful KO, as much as it was expected because he spent practically the entire championship in the relegation zone, is still traumatic and has shaken all of Brazilian football.
The new elite are made up of At. Mineiro (with his League and Cup double), Palmeiras (Libertadores champion twice in a row), both with their respective patrons, and Flamengo (who did not win any important title but was the dominator of the country in 2019 and 2020), thanks to his magnificent economic restructuring. And, from there, the drama begins.
THE EMERGING EXCEEDS THE HISTORICAL
Who sets the trend are the emerging middle class that is occupying the space of traditional clubs: Fortaleza, Red Bull Bragantino (here is the millionaire injection from the energy company) and América Mineiro, which will go to Libertadores; Atlético Goianiense, Ceará and Cuiabá, which will be in the Copa Sudamericana.
All of them adopt more professional management criteria, starting with the sports area: they make cheaper templates with true technical secretaries and non-professionals more concerned with selling their assets at a good price abroad; They track the market for talent from lesser categories and are not afraid to hire strangers or discredited people. They take advantage of not having the media pressure of the greats, who, due to the demands of the environment, end up gathering without rhyme and they are theoretically better players. Either the big guys copy the little ones, or Serie B will end up becoming a graveyard of elephant clubs.
