This Friday (25), at 20 pm, the city of Campina Grande, in Paraíba, will stop to watch the friendly between Flamengo and the local team Unifacisa. The confrontation, the first of the red-blacks' pre-season, also marks another step towards the development of the sport in the northeast region.

Current champions of the national third division and debutants in the Liga Ouro, the home team gave a respectful reception to the #FlaBasquete squad and are showing that the Arena Unifacisa project, to be officially inaugurated tonight, is the starting point for them to join the sport's elite.

Coach José Neto, between practices, spoke about the development of the sport in the region.

"We were very honored to receive the invitation to be part of the inauguration party of this structure dedicated to the development of basketball in the Northeast region, as Flamengo is a reference for the sport in Brazil. This motivates us even more to work. The Unifacisa team is doing an excellent job, having won the Northeast Cup twice and the Brazilian Super Cup, and recently featuring players who participated in the NBB. We are at the beginning of our preseason training, with a greater focus on physical improvement. We have been working tactically in the last four practices to have some content for this match. Despite the festive context, we will take the court to give our best and seek victory," concludes the coach.

The match will be broadcast on FlaTV, on YouTube and on the Flamengo Team's Facebook page, this Friday, starting at 20 pm.

The Flamengo Regatas Club basketball teams receive funding from their sponsors – Estácio, AmBev, Rede D'or, IRB Brasil RE, CSN, Brasil Plural, and EY – via the Federal Incentive Law/Ministry of Sports (IR), as well as support from the Brazilian Club Committee (CBC) resulting from the decentralization of resources generated by the Pelé Law. The Flamengo Guardian Angel Project, a personal tax transfer, benefits all Olympic sports of the Most Beloved Club.