It was announced this Thursday (20) that Cuca will replace Fernando Lázaro as the new male’s soccer coach at Sport Club Corinthians Paulista. What was not expected by the team was the negative reaction from the fans. Cuca was convicted of rape and pedophilia in Switzerland, in 1987. This story does not match the marketing and principle of the club, which in 2018 launched the movement “Respeita as Minas” (Respect the Girls).
Cuca case: understand the sentene
The coach, who at the time played for the Grêmio Football Porto Alegrense team, was with the team on a tour of Europe. During their stay in Bern, Switzerland, Cuca and players Eduardo Hamester, Henrique Etges and Fernando Castoldi were arrested for allegedly raping a 13-year-old girl.
According to the investigation, the girl would have followed the players to her room when she was pulled and abused. Eduardo, Cuca and Henrique remained imprisoned for a month in Bern. Just two years later they were sentenced to 15 months in prison.
However, as Brazil does not stray its citizens, they never served their sentence. The new Corinthians coach denies the story and says that only one of the players had sexual intercourse, but due to his age and the country’s laws it was considered rape.
According to the journalist and lawyer Marília Ruiz, Cuca was accused of “not helping the victim”, since he was the only one not recognized by her. However, he was convicted along with the players for being at the crime scene.
This was not Corinthians’ first failure
This Monday (17th), the Corinthians women’s soccer team won a match for the 2023 Brasileirão Feminino. However, what caught the attention of their fans was the uniform worn by the players.
The new outfit, which features technology to provide more comfort and practicality to athletes, was debuted by the men’s team on Sunday (16). However, in the women’s victory it was possible to see that the shirt was the model for fans, and the shorts are the same ones used last year.
The supporters made it very clear the discouragement that this inequality of distribution and priority causes in women’s football, which doesn’t have as much visibility as the men’s sport.
‘Respeita as Minas’: history
In 2018, for International Women’s Day, Corinthians created the “Respeita as Minas” movement to raise awareness in society to combat sexual harassment and violence against women.
A little after the move, the club was in the process of negotiating with the player Juninho, who at the time was responding for assaulting his wife. This made the association decide not to hire him.
“Corinthians took up the cause of defending women with full intensity and you will see what we are going to do in March (International Women’s Day). But this ‘Respeita as Minas’ campaign was something wonderful. Then the people at the base decided to hire a talented player, 18 years old… they told us that he had a problem with having beaten his wife”, recalls the manager at the time.
That’s why the attitude taken this week shocked the fans so much. Corinthians has not yet commented on the signing.
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The article above was edited by Clarissa Palácio.
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