With the hosts out of the running for the World Cup title, the normal level of enthusiasm towards the final has been drastically lesser in Brazil and now it is nothing more than a football tournament to the mass Brazilians. The tempo is long gone and the reflection of the World Cup has gone under the radar.
Usually the Friday and Saturday nights are party nights for the party-loving Brazilians. I have seen the Brazilians dancing even before a group stage match and also after a highly competitive affair against a bigger side. However, after the shameful semifinal exit, nothing is happening in the streets now. The World Cup is, quite frankly, over for all the Brazilians.
The frequent selling of Brazilian jerseys has stopped as the yellow and green jerseys were available everywhere. A number of jerseys in the roadside markets and posh malls now lay untouched and were left around in the corners. The flags in the cars have vanished and several pubs have minimised their flashy decorations. Overall the spirit has dimmed.
Although the Argentines are dubbed as “Hermanos” or brothers in Portuguese, it is more than true that most of the Brazilians will not support Argentina in the final. I have seen many Brazilians witnessing Argentina’s matches wearing the shirts of their rivals and chanting support for them and it has greatly offended their neighbours. However there are also sections of the home crowd who will support Argentina in the final and chief among them is Neymar. The prodigious son of Brazil recently said he would be cheering for them out of loyalty to his club teammates Lionel Messi and Javier Mascherano.
The reception of President Dilma Rousseff in today’s final in Rio de Janeiro will certainly be interesting to observe. It has already been discussed that the debacle of the Brazilian football team is all set to have a direct impact upon the impending presidential election in October when Dilma will contest in the elections for a second consecutive tenure. However she is already facing huge criticism over the high cost of hosting the World Cup, estimated at $14bn and it might have big consequences on the result of the elections. Brazil’s humiliating elimination also raises apprehensions of a mass upsurge and protests that disrupted the proceedings before the World Cup kicked off.
Jogo Bonito, the beautiful game, and the rhythm of Samba football has been shattered into small pieces. The football-mad country will never forget the trauma that took place against Germany. It seems that Brazil are not Brazil, it is just another football nation.