We live in a world filled with cultures, and each one of them is different. A culture can represent a region, which is an area of the world in which many people share similar beliefs, history, and languages. Culture is a phenomenon that differentiate us as humans from each other. We breathe in the same way, but we all have different lives. Each culture has their own lifestyle. We see this back in the way we eat, love, pray and many more.

But let’s talk about sports. In sports there are also many differences because of culture. Specifically, in the way we spectate football which is the most popular sport in the world. It is estimated that more than half of the world's population consider themselves football fans. Look at the FIFA world cup, the most prestigious association football tournament in the world and most spectated sport tournament that exists.

In order to learn more about a specific culture when it comes to spectating football, I had a conversation with Rafael, better known as ‘Rafa’, a Brazilian guy living in Breda. Yes, he’s a BUas student. Brazil is the most respected country when it comes to football, claiming already 5 FIFA world cup titles. So, who better to talk to than Rafa? Not just a football fan, but a Brazilian football fan.

Brazil was the winner of the 2002 world cup. Rafa doesn’t remember the whole tournament, he was only 5 years old at the time. But he always reminisces on the most memorable moment, the final match. “I remember hugging my mom before the game. I would be jumping around in the living room, together with my mom, chanting. At a point my dad was screaming: CARAJO, PORRA”. This is cursing in Portuguese, if you are curious look them up. Rafa was very young at that time but he sure hasn’t forgotten about the celebration with his family that day. I’ve asked Rafa what it means for him, to experience his home country winning the world cup. “If you ask a Brazilian when the second world war ended, they will probably say they don’t know. However, if you ask them when Brazil won the FIFA world cup their going to tell you right of the bat: 1958, 1962, 1970, 1994 and 2002. Every time we don’t win a world cup, it's sad man”. This clearly shows how important these years are in the Brazilian history. Brazilians are used to seeing their team conquer in the world cup. Rafa did not experience all these world cups, so imagine this one experience he had, but then 5 times. He implied how mind blowing it is that his dad experienced all these beautiful moments. The more we dive into what football means to him, the more I felt the passion and love he has for the game.

Rafa implies that Brazil has many problems and football ignores these problems and creates a sense of proudness. “We have this saying we use when people complain about education, corruption, politicians and shit, it goes; does teachers win the world cup? Do doctors win the world cup? Nahh man…………. Of course, that’s a joke, you know”. And as for the talent, Rafa reminisces on all the football pitches in the favelas, and all the talent presence there. He goes on to explain a slang they use in Brazil “Jeito Moleque”. Something you only see in Brazilian players. Another name for this is “Jinga”. These words are used to describe a playing style you only notice in Brazilian players. Especially Brazilian players who grew up playing in the streets of favelas.

Rafa implies that everyone in Brazil spectates the FIFA world cup. “Everybody watches the world cup, it’s a family thing. Even my grandmother watches the world cup”. Besides that, the Brazilian football league is what he grew up with the most. “When I was a kid my dad used to go with me to watch Botafogo. It was fun.” Botafogo is a Brazilian football club from Rio de Janeiro, the club that he supports. Rafa and his dad used to go watch the club play at least once a month. In the “Estádio Maracanã” which is an iconic stadium in Rio de Janeiro.

I asked Rafa what’s the best story he has when it comes to his experience with football. “It was this game against Flamengo and I was 16” he says. Together with his friend, he went to the Maracanã stadium to watch the match between Botafogo and Flamengo. 2 teams in the Brazilian league. Rafa was in the stands behind the goal, this is where the “ultras” were. Ultras are a group known for their non-stop singing, both for their own team and against the opponent. “I remember even though we were the minority, we were over singing the fans of the opponent”. Botafogo ended up winning the game with score of 2 -1. Rafa expresses that this was one of the best experiences he had in his life. “We went nuts man, it was crazy”, he says. Rafa remembers waking up the next day without his voice. “That was a great feeling”.

As we were reaching the end of our conversation, I asked him to define the Brazilian football culture in a short phrase. “It is definitely a culture, maybe a religion for some, football is in our blood. It’s the everyday subject in Brazil. “We have football fields everywhere, we play football in the parks, on the streets, on the beach, playing with coconuts.” He tells me that it’s more than a culture, he says it’s a part of the identity of the people. “I know the full Brazilian national anthem due to singing along before every Brazil football match”, Rafa said. It's clear how passionate people are about football in Brazil. I believe every nation has their own culture when it comes to sports. Especially football. Where I grew up, football wasn’t such a phenomenon as it is for Rafa. Nevertheless, I learned so much of the football culture in Brazil but also about him. As he said, “it is more than a culture, it’s a way of living”.