Brazil's Legislation of Alcohol Consumption by Sports Fans and the 2014 FIFA World Cup

Abstract

Purpose – To outline the arguments and consequent legislation that prohibited and then allowed alcohol consumption by fans in Brazilian sports arenas since 1996.

Design/methodology/approach – We present the social and political debates regarding alcohol consumption by sports fans having the Brazilian legislation as a starting point and using the multiple streams framework (Kingdon, 1995). We identify the problems, policies and politics streams on three phases: the prohibition of sale and consumption of alcohol in sport stadiums, the exceptional allowance for the 2014 FIFA World Cup and its consequences on state laws five years after the 2014 event.

Findings – Violence among football supporters was the focal event to approve laws prohibiting alcohol consumption in sports arenas. For the 2014 FIFA World Cup, the sport governing body demanded the opposite, so Brazil and some states approved an exception to their laws. Since then, states see an opportunity to allow the sale and consumption of alcohol in and around the stadiums, questioning the relationship between alcohol and violence. These state laws are under examination by the Supreme Court because they may counteract a national law.

Research limitations/implications – Public safety is the key justification to uphold the laws, but a lack of empirical data and research delimit the arguments on how beneficial alcohol prohibition is to suppress supporters' violence. Lawmakers and groups of interest may also include beer industry lobbying strategies and health-related issues as relevant variables in the debate, although they are not discussed in this chapter.

Citation

de Almeida, B.S. and Marchi Júnior, W. (2020), "Brazil's Legislation of Alcohol Consumption by Sports Fans and the 2014 FIFA World Cup", Gee, S. (Ed.) Sport, Alcohol and Social Inquiry (Research in the Sociology of Sport, Vol. 14), Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 99-114. https://doi.org/10.1108/S1476-285420200000014007