DEVASTATED! Or is it too mild a word to explain the emotions of all the fans of Brazilian football, not to speak of the Brazilians, after the 7-1 semi-final routing of Brazil at the hands of Germany? Brazilians wanted to exorcise the ghosts of their loss in the final of 1950 World Cup at the Maracana, till now considered as a national tragedy, by hosting and winning this World Cup at home. That was not to be. Sections of fans booed the tame surrender of Brazil even during the course of the match and some followed these boos with slogans against the current government and its President Dilma Rousseuf. Shocked Brazilians burnt national flags, tyres and effigies of their football heroes – reminiscent of something that happens in our country, when our cricket team loses. But what is surprising and different in Brazil are the memories of June 2013.

Post June 2013 (the widespread protests that shook the entire country), it is not just the regular sports or news media that closely followed the World Cup. Even the 'pink media', (dealing with economic/business concerns) too covered it, in their terms. While commentators and sports writers were busy dissecting the goals and the beauty of the game, 'pink media' was busy discerning the costs and entrepreneurial lessons the World Cup has got to offer. The Forbes in an article asks 'Will Brazil's 7-1 World Cup Hammering Be Bad News for Investors Too'? It then proceeds to answer thus: “Over the period of the World Cup itself, the market is actually down, about 1 percent, which is not the end of the world but is not the rally investors might have hoped for. Now? Well, at the time of writing (June 9) the market was down 0.3 percent for the day since the game ended, and there’s certainly no feelgood factor now. What we’re left with, then, is what we had before: an economy and society with immense challenges, and a president seeking re-election in October with the headache of having spent $11 billion of badly needed public money on stadia. The difference now is that it is impossible to claim that the $11 billion brought pride or victory to Brazil; instead, the public mood is that it brought humiliation”.

Further explaining: “...there is an economic, political and investment dimension to Brazil’s progress in the World Cup too. A victory, and the consequent feelgood factor, could have been good news for embattled president Dilma Rousseff, and a distraction from the considerable social and economic issues that have brought Brazilians to the streets both before and during the World Cup. A failure, and it would seem as if Brazil’s ills were magnified: greater social discontent and an increased likelihood of voting Rousseff out”.

Dave Zirn, a popular sports editor and author who works for the Los Angeles Times and the Nation in his recent book, 'Brazil's Dance with the Devil: The World Cup, The Olympics and the Fight for Democracy', explains the murky relationship between mega sporting events, neo-liberal economic policies and politics. Zirn, unlike other sports editors, locates the mega sporting events in their proper political and economic context.

Zirn was lured into Brazil – a country ruled by the Left-wing Workers' Party (PT) for more than a decade – the only country that got the chance to host two mega sporting events in a span of two years and by the June protests. This is indeed a heady and interesting cocktail for all sports lovers, activists and political observers. More so, if elections are due in three months. 'Brazil's Dance with the Devil' is a result of his painstaking efforts to understand their interconnection.

Zirn adds the conditions imposed by the Federacion Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) and the International Olympic Committee (IOC), for hosting the World Cup 2014 and the Olympics in 2016 as additional reasons that led to the June 2013 protests. He argues that “Global mega-events like the World Cup and Olympics have become incredibly effective tools for reorganising an economy on neo-liberal grounds” (Page 116) and “They are a neoliberal Trojan horse aimed at bringing in business and rolling back the most basic civil liberties”. (Page 165-166). He lists some such similar conditions that were implemented in South Africa during the 2010 World Cup, “the government in line with the FIFA requirements passed bylaws that put in writing where people may drive and park their cars, where they may and may not trade or advertise and where they may walk their dogs (sic!). These laws also made clear that beggars or even those caught using foul language could be subject to arrest”. (Page 158) Anyone who stayed in Delhi during the infamous 2010 Commonwealth Games can vouch for similar experiences.

Borrowing the term 'celebration capitalism', from Jules Boykoff, a professional football player, he approvingly quotes him: “Celebration capitalism is disaster capitalism's affable cousin. Both occur in states of exception that allow plucky politicos and their corporate pals to push policies that they couldn't dream of during normal times. But while disaster capitalism eviscerates the state, celebration capitalism manipulates state actors as partners, pushing economics rooted in so-called public-private partnerships. All too often these partnerships are lopsided: the public pays and the private profits”. He elaborates the concept further and notes: “Celebration capitalism also provides a 'once-in-a-generation opportunity (for police and military forces) to multiply and militarise their weapons stocks, laminating another layer on the surveillance state”. (Page 117) He buttresses this point by giving examples from all the Olympics and World Cups that were organised within the last two decades.

Construction of 'FIFA standard stadiums', evictions for the purpose and security are also some of the conditions imposed on host nations, insensitive to the popular concerns, forget about the discontent they create. “Sporting mega-events shape the economic, political and personal destines of masses of people, with zero accountability for the trial of displacement, disruption and destruction they leave behind”. (Page 163) It is for this reason, many question, 'who is the president of the country, FIFA/IOC or one who is elected by the people'? Here arises the question of sovereignty, the one aspect of the nation state that is trampled by international finance and all its guarding angels (or devils) like the IMF and World Bank. Zirn brackets FIFA and IOC along with both the aforementioned.

The debate between the supporters of hosting mega-events in countries like Brazil and critics like Zirn is old, intense and complex. In his book, Zirn adds to the debate by linking it to the character of the Brazilian government. The PT government came to power riding on the shoulders of the mass mobilisations and social movements campaigning against the neo-liberal policies and imperialism. Unlike its predecessors, it had taken many steps to reduce poverty levels by increasing the minimum wages and other social welfare measures. But this concession should not blind us to the fact that there are problems aplenty – result of the governmental policies which are being genuinely raised through popular protests. The global economic crisis and resultant economic slowdown, is further accentuating the problems, as the government's policies did not mark a complete departure from those pursued earlier. Instead, it tried to tinker with the system, which naturally failed to cover the cracks in the society. This being the reality, the defence put up by the government is as porous as the Brazilian defence in this World Cup.

Zirn wants the PT government to be more Left than centre and as it is not, he gives away on PT and brands it in the same bracket as the other previous governments. Others equally critical, differ on the count that they do not yet want to lose upon the PT and point to the lurking right-wing threat. The ruling classes in Brazil (classes, not the parties) had energetically thrown themselves into the protests and wanted to use them to topple the PT government. Of course, on the economic policies, they are more than eager to please the IMF/World Bank or FIFA/IOC. Even Zirn agrees: “The right-wing in Brazil has no problem with austerity; it just doesn't like who is administering it”. (Page 213)

The neo-liberal economic policies with all their insecurities – insecure jobs, future – kill our creativity. Giving us no time to think than eking out a livelihood, they not only kill our leisure, but also our collective strength to organise. Just as individuals are made bigger than teams, I, is promoted over We. Sports and culture too are tuned to serve these purposes.

Eduardo Galeano, in his Soccer in Sun and Shadow writes: “Soccer and fatherland are always connected, and politicians and dictators frequently exploit those links of identity”. Zirn who opens all his chapters with a quote from Galeano, demonstrates how the ruling classes used sports, football particularly, to galvanise public mood behind them. Interestingly he also details a counter current. Socrates, a versatile genius (a medical doctor, artist apart from being a midfielder par excellence), the captain of Brazil’s football team considered to be the greatest that had never won a World Cup, used his influence to challenge and fight dictatorship and also spread socialist ideas. This indeed is a great example of how to intervene and use popular culture to challenge the ruling classes' hegemony.

The benefits accrued to the Brazilian people from hosting these mega-events are not yet known, but business magazines are already reporting: “The World Cup has been good for global brands. Nike, Coca-Cola and many more have set the world on fire with innovative and compelling campaigns capitalizing on the world’s passion for the World Cup”. Also, it is mentioned that some Brazilian companies like Lojas Americanas (retailer), Ambev (brewer) too have benefitted.

Zirn says: “We also have to realise that the death of public space, the death of leisure time, the death of security and the fostering of fear means the death of sports as well”. (Page 215) Reclaiming sports, sporting events and leisure for the common people too should become part of our struggle against neo-liberalism. Galeano writes in his Soccer: “Misery trains him for soccer or for crime. From the moment of birth, that child is forced to turn his disadvantage into a weapon, and before long he learns to dribble around the rules of order that deny him a place. He learns the tricks of every trade and he becomes an expert in the art of pretending, surprising, breaking through where least expected, and throwing off an enemy with a hip feint or some other tune from the rascals songbook”. It is time for us to ‘break through’ the system and ‘throw off the enemy’. Zirn's book provides us with additional ammunition for the purpose.