We are observing, with some degree of pride and hope for the future, the Reggae Boyz' three-week tour of Brazil which culminates tomorrow with a friendly against Coritiba Football Club.

That the local Reggae Boyz are being guided by Mr Rene Simoes, the Brazilian who coached Coritiba FC just before returning to Jamaica, has made this game most interesting, as we will get an idea of how enduring is Mr Simoes' psychological impact on the players of both teams.

For that, along with his deep sense of professionalism, are the attributes that Mr Simoes brings to the game. And these qualities are extremely important in the demanding world of international football which, as we all know, is not just sport, but a multi-billion-dollar business.

For instance, the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the sport's governing body, in its 2006 report, disclosed that it closed the 2003-2006 financial period with a best-ever overall result of US$816.4 million.

In fact, FIFA said its equity of US$752 million at the end of December 2006 represented the highest figure in its over 100-year history.

In addition to FIFA's general liquid state, the world's top players literally earn fortunes for their skills while attracting millions of spectators in stadia and via television from which football clubs and broadcast networks earn mega bucks.

So international football, we reiterate, is a major industry that provides jobs for hundreds of thousands of people across the globe, even as it entertains.

These are facts that are not lost on Mr Simoes. For we see in his methodology, a careful and deliberate preparation of his players for what many term 'the big time'.

Arranging this current three-week tour of Brazil, for instance, is a clear demonstration of his professional approach to the game and his acknowledgement that the players under his stewardship need to be disciplined and strong - physically and mentally.

We remember well the fixity of purpose he displayed in getting Jamaica to the World Cup Finals in France in 1998, a historic achievement that was described by one foreign television commentator at the finals as a "fairytale qualification".

Based on the results achieved by the Reggae Boyz on this tour so far, Mr Simoes' way of doing business is paying off.
Jamaica have now won three games, drawn two and lost one on the tour.

On Thursday, the team produced what our assistant sports editor, Mr Sean Williams, described as "a classy performance" to defeat Brazilian A League team Atletico Paranaense 2-1 in a practice game.

In preparation for that game, Mr Simoes took the Boyz on a visit to Atletico's state-of-the-art training facility on Wednesday. That visit, he said, was aimed at "psyching-up" his players to take down "Goliath".

That is in keeping with his philosophy that the game is played, and won, not only on the field, but in the mind. As he so succinctly put it, in the game before the contest with Atletico Paranaense "the players thought they were tired, and when you think you are tired, you can't do anything because you are what you think. If they were not mentally tough they couldn't do what they did... Today I know they are tired because this is the sixth game in 14 days, but they didn't think they were tired. They thought right, they spoke right and did right."

Well said, and well done so far, Mr Simoes