Cesar Sbrighi, Country Manager of NewC Sport in Brazil, recently spoke with Footure Capital about how technology and data are reshaping ticketing, membership programmes and stadium safety across Brazilian football. Here are the highlights of that conversation.

 

Building Avante with Palmeiras

NewC Sport entered the Brazilian market through Palmeiras, building the club’s Avante membership programme from the ground up and taking over its ticketing operation. “We started in Brazil with Palmeiras, developing the entire system for Avante – which is now one of the largest membership programmes in the world,” says Cesar. Since the partnership began, Palmeiras’ membership base has grown from 60,000 to close to 200,000 members, and NewC Sport now sells more than 40,000 tickets for each of the roughly 35 home matches it handles per season. The company also works with Atlético Mineiro and Santos.

 

Facial biometrics and safer stadiums at Atlético Mineiro

At Atlético Mineiro, NewC Sport manages access control through facial biometrics, in partnership with Fortress – the technology also used by the NBA, NFL, Premier League and the World Cup. The move followed a costly incident during a Copa do Brasil final, when a system failure led to the club losing home advantage for six matches. Facial recognition now secures both the turnstiles and the stadium’s external perimeter, virtually eliminating fake tickets. “It has completely changed the environment, making it much safer and keeping ticket touts away from the gates,” says Cesar. The impact shows in the numbers: after facial recognition expanded across Brazilian stadiums, the share of fans avoiding matches out of fear of violence fell from 67% in 2023 to 23%, according to a recent CBF survey.

 

Turning data into revenue

Beyond access control, NewC Sport equips clubs with data to plan matchdays more precisely – from forecasting attendance and staffing security and cleaning, to pricing tickets by sector according to a match’s profile. At Atlético Mineiro, purchasing data feeds an AI model that predicts attendance for every fixture. The approach is paying off: matchday revenue in Brazilian football has grown from just over R$1 billion to almost R$2 billion over the past three to four years, according to a report by Galápagos. “Technology generates direct revenue and attracts fans. Clubs that ignore this are losing money and supporters,” Cesar notes.

 

What’s next

NewC Sport continues to expand across Latin America. Cesar points to advanced discussions with new Brazilian clubs and major arenas, alongside a growing presence in Mexico. “The future of Brazilian football is very positive,” he says.

 

Read the original interview (in Portuguese) at Footure Capital.

 

Country Manager
Cesar Sbrighi
[email protected]
+55 (11) 96962-2014