Brazil's head coach Dunga attends a training session for the Brazilian national soccer team in Teresopolis Oct. 9, 2007. (Xinhua Photo) Photo Gallery>>>

    RIO DE JANEIRO, Oct. 9 (Xinhua) -- Brazil's national team head coach Dunga will have his feet printed on the Football Walk of Fame, at Maracana Stadium, Rio's State Secretary of Tourism, Sports and Leisure Eduardo Paes confirmed on Tuesday.

    The homage is expected to take place on the day before the team's game against Ecuador on Oct. 17 in Maracana, in the playoffs for the 2010 World Cup.

    According to Paes, who is also the president of the entity that runs Rio's stadiums, the ceremony could also be held on the day of the match, but it is likely that Dunga leaves his mark on the Walk of Fame, which relies on the footprints of legendary players like Pele and Franz Beckenbauer, on Oct. 16, when the team will be practicing at the stadium.

    Dunga, whose real name is Carlos Caetano Bledorn Verri, played three FIFA World Cups (1990, 1994 and 1998) as a midfielder for the national team. He was nicknamed "sheriff" for his recognized leadership in the field, especially in the campaign that led to the championship title in the U.S. in 1994, Brazil's fourth. He was also the squad captain during the 1998 Cup in France, when they finished second to the hosts.

    Dunga started coaching Brazil in Aug. 2006, following a frustrating elimination in the Cup's quarterfinals. Since then, the team has presented a satisfactory performance in friendly games, but their most remarkable achievement was the 2007 Copa America title, won by a roster that lacked some of the usual stars, such as Ronaldinho and Kaka.

    Regarded with skepticism in the beginning, Dunga has gradually proven to be a serious candidate to remain as the team's manager up to the next Cup, to be held in South Africa. His coaching assistant Jorginho, also a 1994-title winner, is seen as the next to be immortalized on the Walk of Fame, the local media revealed on Tuesday.