Of the many possibilities for analysis offered by the elections in Brazil on October 24th, there is one that, perhaps because it touches me closely, interests and horrifies me particularly: the anti-intellectualism of Flávio Bolsonaro's party.

The social sectors that left poverty behind thanks to the inclusive policies of Lula da Silva's first term in the presidency (2003-2010), now turned into the new Brazilian middle class, hold the key to Sunday's presidential runoff election. This segment, which represents 51% of the electorate, mostly supports the far-right candidate, Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, who already prevailed in the first round with 47.03% of the votes, ahead of Lula's 45.16%.

The European Commission anticipates that the upcoming vote in the European Parliament to ratify the trade agreement between the European Union and Mercosur (comprised of Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, and Paraguay) will be "hard-fought". While there is still no defined date for the European Parliament to issue its position – it is estimated that it will take at least a year, pending a judicial resolution from the Court of Justice of the European Union–, sources from the community executive highlight the strong "political burden" of the debate and point out that there will be "many factors" that could enter into the equation.

Daniella Marques, economic coordinator of Flávio Bolsonaro's campaign and well-positioned to be the next Minister of Finance in a hypothetical far-right government, has been promising the financial market for weeks, in the event of a victory, the implementation of an ultraliberal reform agenda inspired by that of the Argentine president, Javier Milei.

The Brazilian president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (80 years old, Workers' Party, PT), the most influential leader of the left in Latin America in modernity, has suffered this Sunday an electoral defeat that augurs a sad political end for him. A minor figure of low standing, the firstborn of the Bolsonaro clan, Senator Flávio Bolsonaro (45 years old, Liberal Party, PL), has obtained a somewhat unexpected triumph in the first round of the presidential elections.

Jair Bolsonaro's son, Senator Flávio Bolsonaro (Liberal Party), has defeated the president and candidate for re-election, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (Workers' Party) in the first round of the Brazilian elections. With 100% of the votes counted, the eldest son of the Bolsonaro clan has 47.03% of the support, compared to 45.16% for the veteran leader, aged 80, who has become a symbol of resistance of the Latin American left to the Trumpist wave sweeping the continent. Neither candidate can exceed 50% of the votes, and thus Brazil is heading towards a second round next Sunday, October 25th.

On Friday, 48 hours before Brazil's elections, Washington suspended consular services throughout the country “for security reasons,” a controversial decision supported by Australia, which added tension and further distrust from Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva's government regarding the Republican administration's interference in the Brazilian electoral process.

A polarized Brazil heads to the polls this Sunday in the first round of the presidential election, which has turned into a neck-and-neck race of uncertain outcome between Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (Workers' Party), who at 80 years old is facing the last electoral process of his long career, and the eldest son of the former president—now imprisoned—Jair Bolsonaro, Senator Flávio Bolsonaro (Liberal Party), 45 years old.

Donald Trump's government has entered fully into the Brazilian presidential race, which will hold its first round on Sunday, October 4th. The explicit support for the far-right candidate, Flávio Bolsonaro, has transformed into an electoral interference operation that has forced Lula da Silva, who is running for re-election, and his executive branch to take measures to protect themselves.

Brazilian politics remains entrenched and polarized around the figures of Lula da Silva and Jair Bolsonaro, the last two presidents, who personify the two mass ideological movements with the greatest capacity for mobilization this century: democratic labor populism of social inclusion versus the far-right subservient to the interests of the United States.Four years later, there is a second face-to-face at the polls between Lula, who at 80 is seeking an unprecedented fourth term, and Bolsonaro, this time embodied by his eldest son, Senator Flávio, given that his father is disqualified and serving a 27-year and three-month home detention sentence for the coup attempt. It is an unequal confrontation, due to the curriculum and trajectory of the two contenders, in which the current president emerges as the favorite in the polls (41% of preferences in the first round compared to 36% for the oppositionist), but with all scenarios open.The electoral campaign for the October presidential elections – the first round will be on Sunday the 4th and, if necessary, the second will be on the 25th – has started with a low tone, with the protagonists saving their strength, aware that everything will be decided in the second half of September.Everything stays at home

The far-right's preferred candidate for these elections was the current governor of São Paulo, Tarcísio de Freitas, who had the support of landowners, big business, Faria Lima – the São Paulo avenue that names the country's main financial center –, all the centrist "hinge" parties of the Centrão, which in recent years have largely embraced radicalism, the great neopentecostal evangelical churches, and the main media groups that gave him a veneer of "moderation", ignoring the extermination policy that the São Paulo military police, under his mandate, has carried out in the favelas.Tarcísio de Freitas represented a new phase: Bolsonarism without Bolsonaro, a more presentable, modern, and chameleon-like ultraconservatism, stripped of the rudeness and outbursts of the former president. It was even speculated that the former first lady, Michelle Bolsonaro, would form a tandem with the São Paulo governor as a candidate for vice president. This move, however, generated a war of vanities, jealousies, and ambitions within the clan. The four sons, all of them with elected positions, united against their stepmother upon realizing they were losing control of their father's political capital.

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For a long time, Brazil has been an inexhaustible source of footballing talent. Some of the best foreign players who have passed through Barça in recent decades come from the nation that exports the most footballers to other countries in the world. According to the global report by CIES Football Observatory, this year 1,455 Brazilian professionals are playing far from their homeland. But this data does not include footballers of a lower profile, who play in semi-professional leagues and do not move millions. This is the case of three young men in their early twenties, evangelicals, born and raised in Brazil, who in the coming weeks will do their pre-season with the first team of UE Balàfia. The historic neighborhood club of Lleida needs to strengthen its squad for the upcoming season, which they will play in Primera Catalana after being promoted last campaign.

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A video recorded in Brazil, showing parents making their son believe he has worms in his stomach from eating too many sweets, has generated enormous controversy. In the images, the parents show him a fake ultrasound in which a supposed worm appears to be moving inside his stomach. The boy, who still has a sweet in his mouth, ends up crying and promising to stop eating them.

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We begin a five-week journey through Brazil with gastronomy as the common thread. If I tell you to close your eyes and imagine a restaurant in Brazil, it's possible your mind will take you to Rio de Janeiro. It's a magnetic city and a unique enclave in the world. However, despite being the most popular image, it's not representative of a large part of the country. Gastronomically (and sociologically), what does Rio have to do with the miner cuisine of Minas Gerais, the Bahian cuisine of Salvador, or the ancestral cuisine of the Amazon? Very little.

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Colombia, Peru, Chile, Argentina, Ecuador, Paraguay, Panama, Costa Rica, Guatemala, and El Salvador. A blue tide has changed the political map of Latin America since 2023. What seemed like a new pink tide a few years ago – the way the wave of left-wing governments on the continent was called in the early 2000s – has only lasted one term. Now, the ideological shift is even more abrupt. If 15 years ago South Americans turned to the right, now, following the global trend, they are turning to the far-right, paving the way for the United States' plans to re-establish the region as Washington's backyard.blue tide has changed the political map of Latin America since 2023. What seemed like a new What seemed like a new pink tide – the way the wave of left-wing governments on the continent was called in the early 2000s – has only lasted one term. Now, the ideological shift is even more abrupt. If 15 years ago South Americans turned to the right, now, following the global trend, they are turning to the far-right, paving the way for the United States' plans to re-establish the region as Washington's backyard.

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A few hours after Norway eliminated Brazil in the World Cup, a debate began to ignite on Brazilian social media: there were people who, to justify the slow decline of Brazilian football, which has not won the World Cup since 2002, spoke of the rise of evangelism in a traditionally Catholic country. What seemed like an unimportant comment escalated in tone, with Catholics, evangelicals, and atheists arguing, football people wondering if it wasn't a sterile debate, and even theologians having their say.

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A 24-year streak that will be extended, at least, for four more years. Brazil will continue to ask itself questions, trying to figure out when it lost its magic and joy. 24 years without winning the World Cup. And it will be 28, the longest period of drought in Brazilian football history, as in New York, the team coached by Carlo Ancelotti has been eliminated in the round of 16 against a Norway that touches the sky thanks to two goals from Haaland (1-2). The first has arrived and it seemed like the match would go to extra time, with 10 minutes left. The Manchester City forward rose between two defenders and his header, as powerful as a hammer blow from a Viking deity, allowed Norway to open the path that has led them to the quarter-finals for the first time in their history. Norway's opponent in the quarter-finals will be England, who won at the Azteca Stadium after an epic match (2-3).

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The moment of truth has arrived at the World Cup. And the surprises are coming. Germany was eliminated by Paraguay after an epic duel where both teams gave their all, following different styles. Paraguay, returning to a World Cup for the first time in 16 years, knew how to suffer, reaching the penalty shootout alive, where they surprised as the Germans had never lost a penalty shootout in a World Cup final. In fact, until yesterday they had only missed a single penalty, in 1982. In a single day they missed three. Germany was the cross and Brazil, the face. Ancelotti's team did qualify, although they struggled greatly against Japan.

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The Barça player, who arrived at the World Cup expecting to start, became injured during the second match and has been the subject of various journalistic reports published in Brazil. Newspapers report that the player has a serious family problem, as his own father, Rafael Bellolli, allegedly deceived him to keep a large part of his fortune. Former international player Vampeta was one of the first to explain, two days ago, that Raphinha had told his national teammates that he had financial problems. And all because of his father.

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A 21-year-old woman died in Brazil this weekend after being thrown into the void without a rope while practicing bridge jumping. The events, which took place at the Skeleton Bridge, in the state of Sao Paulo, left chilling images that filled social media, where it is seen how three workers throw the young woman down the bridge without anything to hold her.

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The death this Sunday of Argentine YouTuber Gaspar Prim Díaz, known as Gaspi, and American singer Oliver Tree, has shocked social media and the music world. The collision between two helicopters in Rio de Janeiro left six dead, including audiovisual producer Lucas Vignale and Brazilian Lucas Brito Chaves. According to local authorities, the causes of the accident are still being investigated. One of the aircraft crashed into a parking lot, causing a fire that destroyed about twenty vehicles.

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