Fluminense eyes new SAF deal while recalling 1954 missed Barra da Tijuca purchase

In 1954 Fluminense Football Club came close to acquiring a massive tract of land in Rio de Janeiro's Barra da Tijuca. The proposal, which would have included a stadium, training centre and a kilometre of beach, was rejected by the club's deliberative council by a vote of 72‑27. The area, larger than the combined neighborhoods of Leblon, Ipanema, Copacabana and Gávea, is now estimated to be worth well over a billion reais.

Today the club's president, Mattheus Montenegro, says negotiations are ongoing with Lazuli Partners to improve the terms of the club's SAF (Sociedade Anônima do Futebol) structure. The aim is to raise the initial capital contribution from the current offer of five hundred million reais and to revise other contract points before presenting a revised proposal to the council. Montenegro stresses that any investor must understand the club and have a genuine connection to its supporters, rejecting offers from parties unfamiliar with Fluminense's culture.