World Cup Madness

The past month and a half, the city has been alive with World Cup madness. Fifa set up a huge TV on Copacabana beach where I (and thousands of others) watched the majority of the games. It was interesting hearing the Brazilian perspective of the Brazilian team compared with the international commentary. For example, many Brazilians told me they didn’t think the team was strong enough to win because the coach hadn’t selected some of the best players to play for the national team. Coach Dunga was a controversial choice because he likes his team to play very regimented and technical, much different than the energetic flair of Pelé that Brazilians pride themselves on. Also, the strong rivalry with Argentina was never more prominent than when Argentina lost to Spain? After Brazil had already been knocked out. By celebrations that took place after the game, you would have thought Brazil had won! However, quickly after Brazil lost, the city returned to normal and seemed to completely forget that the World Cup had even happened. The hype is already beginning for the 2014 World Cup in Rio!