From his office terrace on the tenth floor of the 2020 Ponce building in Coral Gables, Bruno Costa points to different directions of the landscape. After almost an hour of interview, the director of the CBF (Brazilian Football Confederation) office in Miami tries to transform into an image the argument that justifies the entity’s physical presence in the United States.
Without interrupting his reasoning, he indicates where the offices of FIFA (International Football Federation), Concacaf (Confederation of Football Associations of North America, Central America and the Caribbean) and the Brazilian consulate are located. Further on the horizon, it is also possible to see the stadium of Inter Miami, the current team of Argentine star Lionel Messi.
“Everything is here”, he summarized Sheet.
The region plays a role in Miami similar to that of São Paulo’s corporate neighborhoods, concentrating offices, banks, consulates and multinational headquarters. “The biggest American and world banks are here. It’s like Faria Lima in Miami”, he compared, before giving another dimension. “All the money in the world is here in the United States.”
The choice of location, made by the director himself, had this neighborhood as a determining factor. The space opened in August last year.
Almost a year later, when citing the results obtained since the inauguration, the director preferred to highlight institutional and relationship gains. However, he did not present figures on closed contracts, revenue generated, investors attracted or resources effectively directed to Brazilian football through the office.
According to him, one of the “central objectives” is to connect American investors with Brazilian clubs and federations. Vice-president of the Football Federation of the State of Rondônia, the director explained that his role is to present the best opportunities in Brazilian football, taking into account regional differences.
“It is important to show that there is an entire ecosystem beyond the big clubs. In many states, relatively small investments can generate enormous social, sporting and visibility impact,” he stated.
Costa maintained that the main value of the operation is the creation of a network of contacts capable of bringing the CBF closer to sports entities, companies and governments. “People know that if they get to us, the message will get to the right department,” he said.
Despite the strategic location and the internationalization discourse, the physical structure is lean. Costa claims to be the only employee permanently based in Miami. According to him, the other CBF departments use the space occasionally, when they are in the United States.
“This is really an embassy. I run the office. My wife helps with the package, as I say. She helps. She is not an employee”, said the leader. “As if I were the first lady,” he joked.
While the director was giving the interview, Marcela Costa, Bruno’s wife, was coordinating the organization of an event at the office, scheduled for Tuesday night (23), when the sponsors of the Brazilian team would visit the venue – the day before the clash between Brazil and Scotland, in Miami, in the final round of the group stage of the World Cup.
When commenting on the CBF’s relationship with its partners, Bruno Costa made a direct comparison with the commercial strategy of the AFA (Argentine Football Association), which also maintains a presence in Miami and intensified its international operations after winning the title at the 2022 World Cup.
“The AFA took advantage of Messi’s moment. The CBF has to hit the Brazil brand,” he stated. “They are in a moment of congratulations, but they criticize ‘Messi, Messi, Messi’ a lot. The CBF cannot be stuck with just one player”, he criticized.
After the achievement, and due to the global strength of Lionel Messi’s image, the AFA began to structure a more aggressive commercial expansion outside the country, opening international fronts, approaching strategic markets and strengthening sponsorship agreements. Messi’s arrival at Inter Miami in 2023 helped in this process.
On the Brazilian side, Costa insists, the logic has to be different. Internationalization should not depend on an athlete, but on the consolidation of the national team’s institutional brand.
It is at this point that he connects the debate to women’s football. According to him, the same model of international presence can be decisive for the next stage of development of the sport, especially in mapping athletes trained outside Brazil.
The office in Miami, he says, already works as a point of observation and connection with players with dual nationality or training in the American university system.
“It’s a flow that could gain even more relevance in the cycle leading up to the 2027 Women’s World Cup in Brazil,” he stated.
