20 minutes till kickoff and the line was a 1/4 mile just to reach the entrance to the fan zone. The main screen was a 1/2 mile beyond that but with little prospect of getting in, that was irrelevant. Behind us the crowd stretched as far as we could see clustering around other huge video screens and cramming the bars that line the beachfront. They said 1/2 million people would be on the beach today. I believe them.
We had walked the mile from our hotel through streets decked in Brazilian green and blue and mingling with the fans but, while the back street atmosphere was good, nothing could have prepared us for the mass of people on the beach itself.
Ever since Fortaleza we\’ve been conscious of the security presence. Along Copacabana security was visible, but low key and surprisingly light considering the huge crowd. Although, as in Manaus, this crowd was non threatening, family friendly, and, probably, in large part, self policing.
But we reconsidered our position on Fortaleza. Perhaps the vastly greater security was indication that the city had, in fact, been much riskier than we thought.
Annoyingly on a beach of 500,000 Brazilians, I found myself surrounded by the English contingent. A couple of lads from Doncaster; a group of scary looking Arsenal men from London who, despite their gangsta looks were great fun; a father and son, Leeds fans, from Northampton; and, worryingly for anyone trying to return to London today, the crew of BA52 from Rio to London, departing at 8:30pm – so long as the game didn\’t go to penalties! As it turned out it was a good crowd that added to my enjoyment with our shared knowledge of British football trivia.
The Chilians, another minority in the huge crowd, huddled together under the nearbye, watchful eye of those security guys.
Perhaps surprisingly we weren\’t wholly engrossed in the match in the early stages, relying on the reaction of the crowd to tell us when it was time to pay attention.
Yes: of course, it was no coincidence we parked within two steps of the nice lady with the portable cocktail bar!
As I set off to highland dance with the locals at the porta potty, I was surprised to find that not everyone was watching the match!
Come to think of it, these probably weren\’t Brazilians. Tourists from non footie countries wondering what the b\’jeyzus was goin\’ on!
As games go, it was quite good. Brazilian trickery neutralized by strong Chilian defense. But my Scottish consultant, McStato, told me this was the Braziilans lowest pass completion rate for 48 years which probably explains the outcome of this game and reinforces my opinion that these Brazilians aren\’t good enough to win the Cup. It was a little unnerving how quiet this huge crowd became as the game moved to extra time and looked to be heading to extra time. It probably wouldn\’t have turned ugly. After all, this is a family friendly crowd. However, our new English friends and us did start thinking about escape routes: just in case. We\’ll never know what would have happened if Brazil lost \’cos Chile\’s last gasp shot smacked off the cross bar and then the Brazilians better held their nerve for the penalties! Brazil won and the crowd went wild
(I have great video clip at this moment but can\’t upload from iPhone. I\’ll post when I get back)
The party began right there right then. So much so, most everyone forgot about Colombia Uruguay which, because of the extra time and penalties, was to start very soon just a few miles from the beach at Rio\’s Maracana. We long ago knew we wouldn’t be at the game, so joined the unfortunate ticketless Colombian and Uruguayans to watch in a beach side bar. Pretty good contingency as it turned out.
Considering our often mannich efforts to find tickets for that game, we paid shockingly little attention and so don\’t really have an opinion about the outcome. Just to say, though, that given Brazil\’s earlier struggles with Chile, and the apparent ease of Colombia\’s win, I favor Colombia to win their quarter final.
As if in preparation for that game, the Brazilians and Colombians staged an all-night “party-off” along the beach. The Brazilian zabumbas pounded relentless rhythms and the whole sidewalk shuffled.
A few feet away, the Colombians sang and samba’d to their own beat!
A close match. But while the Brazilians had greater numbers, the Colombians had more style and confidence. I thought the party a good prediction for the actual game.
Returning to the hotel I couldn\’t help think that I\’d been a small part of something really big today. 1/2 a million people is an incredible sight, but I preferred Manaus\’ version of Brazil\’s World Cup party. Smaller. More intimate. Part of the family. That was Cup magic.
What! Scotland Qualified!!! 