There is no question that Brazil’s loss to Germany was a tremendous blow to the nation’s morale. As a unit, Brazilians were embarrassed and devastated over their country’s loss. However, despite what one may expect, Brazilians everywhere let out a collective sigh of relief as Mario Gotze scored the one and only goal of the final game, leading Germany to a victory over Argentina.
Though it may be hard to believe, Brazilians gathered to watch the final game at the Maracaña stadium, celebrating the German’s win in the final. This win made Germany the first team hailing from Europe to take home a World Cup that was played in North or South America.
Post-game, a Brazilian fan was quoted, saying, “ Argentina winning would have been the worst thing I could think of.” While this may seem like a harsh sentiment, many would say Brazilians were warranted in this attitude. Leading up to the final, tens of thousands of fans from Argentina had flooded Brazil, setting up camps wherever they could and consistently heckling Brazilians over their crushing loss to Germany, followed shortly after by their loss to the Netherlands.
On the other hand, Argentina also had reason to be enthused. This year was the first time Argentina had made it to the World Cup Final in the past 24 years, thanks to Lionel Messi, their super-star player who many revere as the world’s best soccer player.
The interesting thing about this rivalry between Brazil in Argentina is that many fans seem to be unaware of the grounds for it in the first place. “We hate them, and we don’t even know why,” commented Flávia Torezani, a Brazilian fan who cheered until her voice was lost for Germany over Argentina. “They’re our rivals. We don’t want them to win, ever. This was almost like Brazil winning today.”
While Brazil is still licking their wounds from their loss, they were able to at least rally some camaraderie and cheer on the falling of their rival. To read more about Brazil’s sentiments on the cup at large and the final fate of Argentina, check out this article.