As part of a project to modernize its facilities, Clube de Regatas Vasco da Gama has found an alternative way to upgrade São Januário stadium and drive improvements in its surroundings through the sale of development rights. 

Because the stadium is a listed heritage site, the solution was to convert these development rights into financial resources by transferring them to other areas of the Rio de Janeiro — an operation that could unlock more than BRL 500 million and finally move the project off the drawing board. 

To make the initiative viable, Pedrinho — Pedro Paulo de Oliveira, the club’s president — will take the field with the support of local authorities. In 2023, Mayor Eduardo Paes signed the Urban Consortium Operation (OUC) for São Januário Stadium, which will enable the renovation of the venue and the revitalization of the surrounding area. 

“The project includes the renovation of the stadium and improvements to its surroundings, which are currently a highly degraded part of the city. The beneficiaries are clearly the club and the population living around the stadium. Potential buyers, in turn, are developers in the Barra da Tijuca region, because in this operation the development rights originate in São Januário, but the receiving areas are defined within specific zones of Barra da Tijuca,” says Claudio Hermolin, president of Sinduscon-Rio. 

In total, up to 280,000 square meters of development rights may be transferred and used in residential, commercial, service, hospitality or mixed-use projects, always in compliance with the urban planning rules of each receiving area. 

The proceeds from the sale of these rights have a defined destination — and enhanced oversight. The funds may only be used for the works and interventions outlined in the OUC plan, ruling out any possibility of being used to pay debts, salaries, player signings or sporting reinforcements. There is also no connection to the club’s SAF structure: the operation’s cash flow is restricted exclusively to the São Januário complex.