Rio de Janeiro, 23 Mar Sports leader Ednaldo Rodrigues was elected this Wednesday as the new president of the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) following the crisis caused by scandals involving his predecessors, the last of which, Rogerio Caboclo, was removed for sexual and moral siege. Rodrigues, who served as interim president of CBF in Caboclo and who for eight years commanded the Bahia State Football Federation, won 137 of the 141 possible votes in an election held this Wednesday in Rio de Janeiro. The leader was elected for a four-year term, until 2026, so he will head the governing body of five-time world champion football during the 2022 World Cup (Qatar) and up to two months before the 2026 World Cup (United States, Mexico and Canada). Rodrigues, 68, will succeed Caboclo, of whom he was vice president and who was dismissed by the Confederation on charges of moral and sexual siege made by two officials of the entity. It will also be the successor of three leaders who provoked corruption scandals and which FIFA sanctioned with their total exclusion from football: Ricardo Teixeira, José María Marín and Marco Polo Del Nero. Of the last four presidents of the Confederation, three did not complete their terms. Rodrigues, who was the only candidate running for president, received support from 26 of Brazil's 27 regional football confederations. The only federation that did not support it was that of the state of Alagoas, which is led by Gustavo Feijó, its main opponent, who did not get endorsements to run for his candidacy and who tried to interrupt the election with judicial remedies. He also received the vote of the twenty clubs of the first division and 19 of the 20 in the second division. The only vote he did not receive was that of Ponte Preta, canceled due to bureaucratic problems. That broad support reflected their favorable position to give clubs more voice and rights, including advocating the creation of a league in Brazil so that the national tournament no longer depends on CBF. Rodrigues, the first black man to lead the Confederation, said he suffered prejudice during the electoral process because he was black and because he came from a northeastern state, the poorest region of Brazil. “Clubs and federations said no to prejudice. I want to ask that this entity be one of its affiliates, the Brazilian football clubs, and that no external interference can affect its performance. Let the clubs have a voice and not just a vote,” he said in a brief speech after being proclaimed president. “Why didn't Brazil ever have a league? She is going to give Brazilian football more conditions,” he added, supporting one of the biggest demands of the clubs. Despite the fact that there was a judgment by a court in Alagoas suspending the election due to alleged irregularities, the CBF Electoral Commission decided to continue the process with the allegation that it was never notified of the judicial decision and that it has an agreement with the Prosecutor's Office itself to carry out the election. As the leader of the Bahia Federation until 2019, Rodrigues was characterized by his work in favor of women's football and youth categories. CHIEF cm/ed/car
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