Casagrande and his demons (Updated Edition)

The updated edition of Casagrande and His Demons reveals the last 10 years of the former player's life, covering addiction relapses, personal challenges and his engagement with contemporary social and political issues .

Casagrande and His Demons chronicles the turbulent life of former soccer player Walter Casagrande Júnior, from his rise to prominence as a sports idol to his struggle with cocaine and heroin addiction. The book's title is not merely metaphorical: Casagrande suffered from numerous hallucinations of demons in his apartment during the height of his drug addiction. Written in collaboration with journalist Gilvan Ribeiro, the book offers a frank and unvarnished look at Casagrande's decline and redemption, highlighting his hospitalization and the importance of sharing his experience to raise awareness of the dangers of addiction.

Additionally, the book highlights other aspects of Casagrande's life, such as his return to Brazil after years in Europe – where he was forced to use doping at major clubs –, his career as a sports commentator on TV Globo and his efforts to reconnect with his children after rehabilitation.

This updated edition also explores more recent events in the former athlete's life, such as his romantic relationship with Baby do Brasil, his departure from TV Globo, and his engagement in contemporary social and political issues, such as the fight against racism—culminating in the founding of the group Esporte pela democracia—and his involvement in the 2022 election campaigns. His public activity and commitment to the issues of his time reflect his ongoing search for meaning and impact beyond the four lines of the football field.

Walter Casagrande Júnior's journey through the world of drugs could be a film script with strong elements of horror, suspense, and psychological thrillers. Like the protagonists of films like Trainspotting (1996) and Requiem for a Dream (2000), he reached the brink of madness and had a close encounter with death several times. In this new edition, Gilvan Ribeiro and Casagrande further refine the visceral, painfully true, and incredibly moving account of the most complex phase of the former player's life. From fame to the mud, from the roar of fans chanting his name to the deathly silence of an ICU, we learn in detail the details of a journey that had every chance of ending in tragedy. – Susanna Lira, filmmaker, director of the series Casão: Num jogo sem regra (Casão: A Game Without Rules)