Brazilian businesswoman Leila Pereira, 59, often feels the loneliness of being the only one among men. A feeling that has only worsened since two years ago she became sole president of one of Latin America's major soccer clubs, Palmeiras of São Paulo (Brazil), which is on a historic winning streak. Pereira started his third and final year in office as president with a bang: this Tuesday he gave a press conference to which he invited only female journalists. As expected, some male colleagues protested. The president portrayed the gesture as a criticism of “structural machismo.” The aim was to make men aware of the exclusion and lack of opportunities that women generally suffer. He also announced news: coach Abel Ferreira has extended his contract by one year.
The policy has promoted a specific experiment to compel empathy from those in power towards those who demand their fair share. To those who criticized her for leaving men out on this occasion, she replied bluntly: “I tell them: 'Don't be hysterical,' which is what they tell us when we protest.” “We don't even want a privilege , but rather opportunities to show that we are competent, that we want to have a place in football.”
The Palmeiras president's first appearance in 2024 was undoubtedly atypical. And also “historic,” according to her and several of the journalists present in the press room of the club’s football academy. Two of her four vice presidents, who accompany her on the board, are also women.
The businesswoman's arrival – and her checkbook – coincided with the best awards run in the club's history, but even that hasn't exempted her from harsh criticism. The men's team has won six titles in two years: the Recopa Sudamericana (2022), a Brazilian Super Cup (2023), two Brazilian championships and two of the State of São Paulo. The women's team won the Libertadores. Pereira, who came to the centuries-old club founded by Italian immigrants in the early 20th century through marriage, plans to run for re-election at the end of the year.
The fact that two of her husband's companies – part of a trading company that she ran alone for years – are sponsors of Palmeiras is the reason for the main criticism she receives. Many see this as an obvious conflict of interest, which the president flatly rejects.
It was she who suggested to her husband, José Roberto Lamacchia, about 80 years old, the idea of sponsoring the team, of which he had been a member since childhood, through Crefisa, a successful private lending company with millions of customers among the poorest Brazilians. That's how this woman, who retains the accent of her hometown of Rio de Janeiro, ended up in soccer.
This Tuesday she expressed her conviction that a man who would assume the presidency would not receive the criticism that he suffers. “If Palmeiras loses, the responsibility lies with Leila; If he wins, he wins despite Leila,” he commented ironically. “Could it be that these victories don’t benefit me?”
The only question that the president did not want to answer, given the prevailing tension, concerned the criticism of her from the main group of green and white fans.
Pereira arrived on time to meet the press, wearing an elegant purple shirt. Her speech also had an obvious feminist tone. The vast majority of professionals accredited for the occasion specialize in the sport, but their daily work does not include covering a great team like Palmeiras, a male-majority niche. The teams, the men and women, their money, their new signings and the many criticisms of Pereira capitalized on the two hours of questions and answers.
The Palmeiras boss has stressed the need to manage the clubs sustainably. “If not, we will continue to lose players. “They want to go abroad because we can't compete with these European clubs.” The most recent example is Endrick Felipe Moreira, a gem from Palmeiras, who will move to Real Madrid next July at the age of 18. He was a 16-year-old teenager when the signing was completed for around €60 million.
He has always emphasized that he runs the club as a company “that has the specificity of the passion of the fans”. But he has made it clear that new signings will be decided by the coach and the technical committee and “not the general protest”, and that there is an obligation to pay salaries on time before signing big stars or incurring prohibitive debts. “The advantage in football is the titles,” he emphasized and boasted about his achievements. He also made it clear that in his opinion the beautiful sport in Brazil is not elitist and ticket prices are affordable. And that his players will continue to use the family's private plane for free because the Brazilian football calendar is crazy and the logistics are hell.
He has promised that before the end of the year, when the current sponsorship agreement expires, a tender will be opened to find “suitable companies” with healthy accounts to take on the role and that the board will select the best.
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