Avenida Nove de Julho and Plaza de Mayo, in Buenos Aires, have been filled with fans since the early hours of this Tuesday morning (20) waiting for the World Cup champions.
The atmosphere is festive, almost a collective ecstasy, with war chants, jumping and screaming in the middle of a very hot day.
With roads blocked for vehicles and transport operating irregularly, many Argentines are walking to the avenue, where the players will parade with the FIFA Cup.
In Plaza de Mayo, every moment a caravan arrived with hundreds of fans singing in chorus the song of the Argentines in the World Cup. They come with drums, flags and hats, and blue and white T-shirts complete the outfit.
Tourism expert AnÃbal Origuela, 42, left San Telmo with his business friend Geraldo Nunes, 27, to participate in what they consider to be a historic moment in their lives and that of the country. The walk of about 40 minutes was nothing close to winning the World Cup.
“It’s crazy here, there will be 72 hours of partying. It’s like they say around here: you can’t feel football, you can live it'”, said AnÃbal.
Another group of young people from La Plata, about 100 kilometers from Buenos Aires, also preferred to leave their car in the vicinity of Plaza de Mayo and continue on foot. It was the first time they had seen the Argentine national team become world champions.
“It’s a very strong emotion that I will carry with me forever. I can’t explain it,” said student Valentina Peralta, 20.
“Participating in this party is a pleasure, a way of giving back what the players have done for the country. This is all the most beautiful thing you have in sports,” said student Lúcio Baldoni, 20.
With the country in economic crisis, some take advantage of the party to earn money. And it’s not just the usual cold beer and water or the barbecue.
Car salesman Ivan Lopez, 35, left the trade aside this Tuesday to offer photos with a replica of the World Cup cup. There was even a queue to take a picture with him, and people only made a voluntary contribution.
“I bought the cup online and paid US$500. It is very heavy, similar to the official one. [a festa] to make money,” said Lopez.
Even working, he said he was very happy and joked when he found out that the interview was for a Brazilian newspaper. “Here we are like Xuxa’s song: ‘Everybody is happy? Are you happy!'”, he said, singing and jumping
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