Brazil’s humiliating exit from the World Cup is as close as it gets to a national trauma in a football-mad nation whose identity is closely associated with its team. The country of 200 million people had hoped to win the title at home and erase memories of its 1950 World Cup defeat to Uruguay in Rio de Janeiro, the notorious ‘Maracanazo’ at the Maracana Stadium.
But instead Brazil suffered the worst defeat in its 100-year footballing history, falling 7-1 to Germany at the Mineirao Stadium in the southeastern city of Belo Horizonte, now the infamous ‘Mineirazo.’
‘It looked like a game between adults and children,’ wrote the prominent sports analyst Juca Kfouri on his blog. ‘Brazilian football has never experienced such humiliation.’ In 1950, Brazil had yet to win the World Cup and getting the title would have put the developing country on the map.
Since then, the Selecao has won a record five World Cup titles, gave the world the ‘jogo bonito’ (beautiful game) and produced football giants as Pele, Garrincha, Zico and Ronaldo, winning over fans among the rich and the poor, white or black. On Wednesday’s superstar Neymar was unable to play the semifinal after suffering a broken vertebrae in the previous game.
The power of football put a lid on protests that had marked the run-up to the tournament. Hundreds of thousands of people had held protests last year during the Confederations Cup, denouncing the record $11 billion spent on the World Cup and demanding the money be spent on better hospitals and schools instead. There were a few protests that attracted small crowds during the World Cup, though after Tuesday’s defeat some fans wondered whether hosting the tournament had been worth the cost.
Although the Selecao lost, the tournament itself can be considered a success, with fears of chaos never materializing despite delays in the construction of stadiums, experts said. And the games were full of surprises, upsets and goals. ‘There have been many cups since 1950. There were victories and defeats. Everybody is used to this. The Maracanazo was something that was never repeated. It was unprecedented,’ said Lamartine da Costa, a sports management expert at Rio de Janeiro State University.
But instead Brazil suffered the worst defeat in its 100-year footballing history, falling 7-1 to Germany at the Mineirao Stadium in the southeastern city of Belo Horizonte, now the infamous ‘Mineirazo.’
‘It looked like a game between adults and children,’ wrote the prominent sports analyst Juca Kfouri on his blog. ‘Brazilian football has never experienced such humiliation.’ In 1950, Brazil had yet to win the World Cup and getting the title would have put the developing country on the map.
Since then, the Selecao has won a record five World Cup titles, gave the world the ‘jogo bonito’ (beautiful game) and produced football giants as Pele, Garrincha, Zico and Ronaldo, winning over fans among the rich and the poor, white or black. On Wednesday’s superstar Neymar was unable to play the semifinal after suffering a broken vertebrae in the previous game.
The power of football put a lid on protests that had marked the run-up to the tournament. Hundreds of thousands of people had held protests last year during the Confederations Cup, denouncing the record $11 billion spent on the World Cup and demanding the money be spent on better hospitals and schools instead. There were a few protests that attracted small crowds during the World Cup, though after Tuesday’s defeat some fans wondered whether hosting the tournament had been worth the cost.
Although the Selecao lost, the tournament itself can be considered a success, with fears of chaos never materializing despite delays in the construction of stadiums, experts said. And the games were full of surprises, upsets and goals. ‘There have been many cups since 1950. There were victories and defeats. Everybody is used to this. The Maracanazo was something that was never repeated. It was unprecedented,’ said Lamartine da Costa, a sports management expert at Rio de Janeiro State University.