Copa América Femenina alters practice rules following outcry from Brazil

New York Times

a day ago

CONMEBOL, South American football's governing body, has advised teams competing in Copa América Femenina that all players will now have access to pitches for pre-game warmups, according to a memo reviewed by The Athletic.
The message went out to teams Thursday night, following widespread criticism the previous day from Brazilian players, including Marta, the six-time FIFA Player of the Year, over tournament regulations requiring players to warm up in a small, indoor area alongside their opponents.
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'From now on, in addition to the goalkeepers who already had a warm-up period on the field for 15 minutes, the possibility will be enabled so that the field players can also warm up on the field of play during the same period of time,' the memo said. 'After an extensive evaluation of the state of the playing fields of the competition stadiums so far and also considering the feedback received from some participating teams, CONMEBOL has decided to implement an adjustment in the pre-match operations.'
The mid-tournament change comes after players publicly criticized the confederation and organizers in Ecuador over warm-up conditions at the tournament, which is considered the premier event in South American women's football.
Images have circulated on social media, with a video posted by Dibradoras, a Brazilian media company that covers women's sports, showing Brazilian and Bolivian players warming up together in a confined space ahead of their Wednesday night match.
Pode isso, Conmebol?
Tivemos acesso a imagens do espaço onde a @SelecaoFeminina aqueceu antes de entrar em campo para o jogo contra a Bolívia na Copa América.
Dividindo um 'puxadinho' com as adversárias, as jogadoras ficaram espremidas fazendo as atividades + pic.twitter.com/QzkfNDTTOy
— Dibradoras (@dibradoras) July 16, 2025
The tournament implemented the original system to prevent damage to the pitch at Gonzalo Pozo Ripalda Stadium, which hosted back-to-back games on Wednesday.
'It's been a long time since I played in a tournament here in South America, and we're saddened by these situations,' Marta, 39, told the Brazilian outlet Globo Esporte. '(CONMEBOL) demand performance from the athletes and a high level of work, but we also demand a high level of organization. We have the right to demand organization.
'This situation is really disruptive. There wasn't enough space for both teams, but both wanted to be there to prepare. I really don't understand why we can't warm up on the field. This is still a problem for us because it's very hot here, with the altitude. We hope CONMEBOL reverses some of the issues and improves things.'
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Brazil's head coach, Arthur Elias, previously indicated that this setup limited his ability to evaluate players before deciding on his starting 11. This was partly why 25-year-old Kerolin was absent from Brazil's lineup in their opening game against Venezuela. The Manchester City forward, who was the NWSL's Most Valuable Player in 2023, went on to score a hat-trick in Brazil's 6-0 win over Bolivia.
'Unfortunately, we are in a competition where the teams don't warm up on the field,' Elias said of Kerolin's initial absence. 'That is, they don't warm up football, they warm up other movements. … It's more or less the size of this room. We can only warm up the starters. We can't even warm up the reserves.
'These are not gestures that are part of the game. There's not much exchange of passes, there's no intensity that you can achieve because the space is small, so they don't warm up as the football player has to warm up to practice.'
Brazilian midfielder Ary Borges, who plays for the NWSL's Racing Louisville FC, echoed similar criticism following Brazil's win against Bolivia, directly calling on CONMEBOL president Alejandro Domínguez for improvements. Borges shared her grievances, including the lack of a video assistant referee (VAR) system in the group stage, with commentator and former player Francielle Alberto.
'We are playing in a competition that counts for a place in the Olympics … and we don't have VAR in the games, we can't step onto the pitch in a game against Venezuela without knowing what the pitch (is) like,' Borges said, 'Worst of all, (we are) warming up on a synthetic pitch, (over) cement, within a space of 10, 15 meters, stinking of paint, because it looks like they painted the stadium there two days, one day before.
'So, it's very difficult, because last year we had a men's Copa América at good times, in good stadiums and we see … this disregard for women's football and it's a shame.'
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In speaking to Globo Esporte, Borges added, 'Ask (Domínguez) if he could warm up in a 5 to 10 meter space that smells of paint. I think we had the example of the Men's Copa América, with a huge structure. Why is the women's tournament having this kind of thing?'
Brazil is the defending champion of the Copa América Femenina title and is an 8-time winner of the competition. This summer's spectacle is of increased significance with the 2027 women's World Cup coming to South America for the first time, with Brazil serving as tournament hosts.
(Photo of Marta: Franklin Jacome / Getty Images)