The best grounds are the temples of Brazilian football, Maracanã in Rio and the Art Deco Pacaembú in São Paulo, one of the most beautiful football stadiums in the world. Tickets are cheap - less than a couple of dollars to stand on the terraces ( geral), around $5 for stand seats ( arquibancada); championship and international matches cost a little more.

Grounds are large, and stadiums usually well below their enormous capacities except for important matches, which means that you can almost always turn up and pay at the turnstile rather than having to get a ticket in advance.

Most stadiums are two-tier, with terracing at the bottom surrounding the pitch, and seats on the upper deck. Even the small cities have international-class stadiums: they're a municipal virility symbol.

The number of regional championships and national play-offs means there is football virtually all the year round in Brazil - the national championship is a complicated mix of state leagues and national sudden-death play-offs. Even though many major Brazilian stars play in Europe these days, there is still enough domestic talent to support very high-quality football.

See also World Cup

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