Titles and queues do little to change the country's fans

Datafolha's latest survey shows little variation in relation to the list of 93

Flamengo and Corinthians maintain a good advantage over their rivals; teams fluctuate within the margin of error over these 14 years.

RODRIGO BUENO\ Sao Paulo Newspaper\

The series of titles and the number of years Brazilian clubs have been winning have not had a significant effect on Datafolha fan surveys in recent years.

The numbers collected between August 14th and 15th, resulting from 2.771 interviews in 164 municipalities across the country with people aged 16 or older, show variation within the margin of error (two percentage points) in relation to the survey carried out in May 2006.

And, analyzing the polls since 1993, little has changed on the national scene,\ which sees Flamengo and Corinthians comfortably ahead in preference.\

The three clubs with the largest fan base in sequence, São Paulo, Palmeiras and Vasco, maintain the status that makes them earn the same TV budget as their rivals Flamengo and Corinthians.

The Rio de Janeiro red-black team appears in the latest Datafolha list with 17% of the country's fans, the same number as in 1993 - Flamengo hasn't won the Brazilian Championship since 1992, and its greatest glories date back to 1981.

The club rose two percentage points (margin of error) compared to last year's survey. It had already reached 19% of the preference and 15%.

Corinthians dropped one percentage point compared to the previous list,\ but its 12% preference now does not reveal a downward trend - the team's only\ title in the last four years was the disputed Brazilian Championship of\ 2005.\

In 1993, the most popular of the São Paulo teams appeared with 10% of the votes.

São Paulo, despite recent titles, has been stagnant since 2005, when it won its third World Cup.

With 8% of the country's fans, it has just one percentage point more than it had in 1993, the year of its second World Cup.

Palmeiras has fluctuated more since 1993, when it left its longest streak,\ but little escapes the margin of error.\

In the latest survey, it shows the 8% that it showed in two other lists this century, which did not see Palmeiras win titles in the elite.

Vasco also shows small variations over the last 14 years.

It doesn't drop below 4% of the national fan base nor exceed 7% - in the most recent survey, it is at 5%.

The other big teams are very close in the polls.

Grêmio, Santos and Cruzeiro, with 4%, 3% and 3% of the preference, respectively, come in a second tier.

Over the last 14 years, they have reached a top 4% of the national fan base.\ In 1993, they had one percentage point less.\

Inter, in the first post-world title poll, has 2% of the votes.

In mid-2006 and in 1993, it was 3%.

Atlético-MG is the most consistent: in the 12 surveys carried out by Datafolha in the last 14 years, it has always had 2% of the preference.

Fluminense and Botafogo fluctuate between 1% and 2% (in the latest survey, the black and white team is ahead), which leaves them technically tied with teams with more localized fan bases, such as Bahia, Sport and Santa Cruz.