Clube de Regatas do Flamengo and Fluminense Football Club signed the new stadium concession contract this Friday at Maracanã. The duo won the bid and will continue to manage Maracanã for another 20 years. President Rodolfo Landim represented the Flamengo club at the signing. Mário Bittencourt, president of Fluminense, represented his club. 

"Perhaps Flamengo's greatest achievement in the last six years, frankly speaking, despite the importance of the titles we've won in football, was the Maracanã. After all, if we didn't have the Maracanã, it would have been difficult for us to win any titles. We have to remember that when we took over in 2019, we had no place to play. Flamengo had rented the stadium from Portuguesa. There were a number of problems there. And we sought to manage the Maracanã, which at the time was handled through an intermediary. And with that, we managed to convince the state governor at the time and the lieutenant governor, who is now governor (Cláudio Castro), and we now have a temporary use permit," said Landim.

"This agreement was renewed every six months. The idea was to have a bidding process. We ended up participating in a bidding process, a shorter process, with a one-year term, until the final bidding process was completed. And now we've finally managed to sign the 20-year contract. In other words, I think it's practically impossible that in the future, after 20 years, this concession won't be renewed. Flamengo now has the right to manage Maracanã without intermediaries for the next 20 years, together with Fluminense. It's something that has always been a great dream of our fans. For me, it's a source of great satisfaction. It's essential for the club to have its own home to guarantee home games. And if this is achieved through the most iconic stadium in the world, that's even more important. It was a dream five years ago. We fought hard to get here," he added.

"I'm very proud to be completing this process. This concession was designed to prioritize football. The game has always been the priority," stated Governor Cláudio Castro. 

Mário Bittencourt, president of Fluminense, spoke about the successful partnership with Flamengo in managing Maracanã. 

"These five years have been incredibly valuable for us, in terms of learning. Not only in terms of stadium management, but also in terms of great learning, a great friendship in our time together. We're rivals on the field, but we're great partners at Maracanã, and we're great partners in other aspects of Brazilian football. We do a lot together, we have very similar thoughts about the future of Brazilian football. We talk about technical issues, administrative issues in Brazilian football. It's the biggest stadium in the world. The biggest landmark in world football. Flamengo and Fluminense have everything they need to be great managers. I hope they can win many titles here. In the last five State Championships, we've won four (...)" he stated. 

As stated by president Rodolfo Landim, Flamengo and Fluminense have shared the management of Maracanã since April 2019. Flamengo with 65% and Fluminense with 35%.

Finally, Rodolfo Landim made it clear that, even with the construction of the new stadium, Flamengo will continue to play a lot at Maracanã.

"The new stadium's opening date is 2029; that's our plan. For the next five years, in any case, we'll continue playing only at Maracanã. The idea is, even with our own stadium, Flamengo will continue playing some games here. Regional classics. The idea is for us to stay here. It's emblematic of Rio de Janeiro football. The Fla-Flus, Flamengo vs. Vasco, Flamengo vs. Botafogo... Always playing here at Maracanã. A divided fan base. Which I think is part of the history of Rio football. It's something we intend to maintain even with the construction of the stadium," Landim concluded. 

Also present at the event, representing Flamengo, were the General and Legal Vice President, Rodrigo Dunshee, the CEO, Reinaldo Belotti, the Vice President of Communications and Marketing, Gustavo Oliveira, the Vice President of External Relations, Gony Arruda, and the Vice President of Assets, Marcos Bodin, in addition to the Legal Director, Antonio Panza.