The thermal sensation of almost 38°C in Rio did not match the mood of sadness that took over Prainha Square, in the city’s port area, after Brazil’s elimination from the World Cup this Friday (9).
Hours before, the carnival scene with samba, beer and lots of partying, in the famous bohemian stronghold of the city, indicated another result.
Not even the tension throughout the game discouraged the fans who remained attentive to the screen installed in the square full of green and yellow.
“When it’s sunny, when it rains, people get excited. Here, people come to enjoy themselves, it’s fun, unity. People spread out to watch on the big screen and also here on our TVs in the bars. For us, it’s also been very good in terms of sales. , it’s like Carnival”, said Ana Cristina de Mello, who is the manager of one of the local bars.
With the glass in hand and the samba on the foot, systems analyst Bruno Monteiro said that the important thing is to cheer: “We get nervous, but we can’t lose our joy. This is football, it’s the World Cup. Let’s party !”.
One of the highlights of the animation came with Pedro entering the field. With much applause, the Rio crowd sang “Ai, Pedro” in support of the striker.
But the celebration exploded when the long-awaited goal came from Neymar in the first half of extra time.
It didn’t take long, however, for the weather to cool down. In a unified gesture, the crowd in Rio raised their hands to their heads and their eyes were filled with despair at the Croatian goal.
With the announcement of the penalties, after the score of 1 to 1 in extra time, the indignant murmur could be heard from all sides: “it can’t be, not again”, they predicted.
Croatia’s victory on penalties silenced the carnival crowd. Many dispersed while some remained looking at the screen, desolate.
Sitting down, with her hands over her mouth, young Piettra Peixoto, 14, said she couldn’t believe the result. “I was sure we were going to be six. I can’t believe it,” she said, crying.
For lawyer Vanessa Soares, 40, the Brazilians deserved the title: “We deserved this joy. It’s unbelievable that the country’s football team let another play better than us”.
Despite the defeat, journalism student Júlia Faria, 18, kept her good mood. According to her, the fault was her choice of shirt for this Friday’s game. “I repeated the shirt I wore in the match we lost to Cameroon. I thought I could reverse the bad luck of that day, but it didn’t work,” she said, pointing to the white shirt of the Brazilian national team she was wearing.
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