Abstract des Autors

Brazil has been widely mythologised as the 'football land' since the late 1930s, a process that is central in narratives about Brazilian identity. This article addresses the historic origins, social consequences to Brazil, and the current state of this myth. Through the use of Brazilian literature on football and society, combined with data from mainstream and social media, this article attempts to resignify the meanings of emblematic moments in Brazilian football history associated with the FIFA World Cups of 1950 and 2014. The causes of the contraction of the 'football land' myth are considered. As Brazil has becomes a more sophisticated society, a process of fragmentation of the country's identities has been precipitated by turbulent social moments. The article acknowledges that football can still play a key role in the social transformation of public life in Brazil, but is no longer a magical tool to mask or solve social problems. Football provides a social space where creative solutions for civic life challenges can emerge.