New CBF Headquarters Cost Twice as Much as it Profited in 2013

05/02/2014 - 09h46

The new headquarters of the Brazilian Football confederation (CBF) will cost at least twice as much as it made in profit in 2013.

Chosen to also house a museum for Brazil's national team, the building has already consumed R$100m (US$45m) - R$70m (US$31m) at the sale in 2012 and around R$30m (US$13m) in construction works in the following year.

The cost of the venture is shown in the last statement released by the confederation, which registered a profit of R$55m (US$24m).

The headquarters will be named after CBF's current president José Maria Marin - the recently elected representative Marco Polo Del Nero will take over in 2015.

According to the confederation's 2013 final statement R$47m (US$21m) was spent with "current construction works". At the time the institution was carrying out only two works - renovation works at Granja Comary and adaptation works at the new headquarters.

As the modernization of the new training facilities cost around R$15m (US$6.7m) the rest (around R$32m - US$14.3m) was used in the new space, 6.642,83 square metres at Barra da Tijuca, a prime residential district in the west of Rio. The balance should increase even more: the works have not yet finished. Current expenditure will only be released in April 2015 when the institution will divulge the final statement for the current year.

CBF will only move to the new address a short time before the beginning of the World Cup. The inauguration of the new headquarters is scheduled for June 4th, one day after Luiz Felipe Scolari's squad will play Panama at the Serra Dourada stadium in Goiania, for the first warm-up match in preparation for the World Cup.

The building was subjected to extensive structural renovations in order to house the national team museum. According to the official project1,340 items will be exhibited on the first floor of the building. Replicas of the Fifa trophy and of Jules Rimet will also have a special place in the exhibition.

The second floor will be destined to staff offices. Directors, the president and his staff will be on the third floor.

On the top floor, CBF will run a restaurant and a television studio. The latter will be used for recording programs to be aired on the institution's website.

CBF has been renting, since 2002, a whole floor at a commercial building in Barra da Tijuca. Before that the confederation was run from its own building from the capital of Rio State, Rio de Janeiro.

CONTROVERSIES

One year ago Folha revealed details of a R$70m (US$31.3m) deal. Documents indicated overbilling at the sale of the new headquarters building. CBF announced the deal on June 27th 2012 but only inked the deal on August 31st of the same year.

In the meantime, five out of eight rooms were sold to third parties for R$12m (US$5.4m) and were later sold directly to the institutions for R$27m (US$12.1m).

CBF's then-president presented, at the time, evaluations of three consultancy agencies intended to prove that the R$70m (US$31.3m) paid matched the market average.

Translated by CRISTIANE COSTA LIMA

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	Daniel Marenco/Folhapress
	The new headquarters of the Brazilian Football confederation (CBF) will cost at least twice as much as it made in profit in 2013