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What’s the Story?
Kolkata surpassed Delhi as far as record attendance is concerned, during the Brazil-Germany FIFA U17 World Cup game at the Salt Lake Stadium, on Sunday.
It was Paulinho who made all the differences for Brazil against Germany in the quarterfinal of FIFA U17 World Cup in Kolkata. It was his thumping goal at 77th minute, which saw Brazil ease past Germany.
After playing a fine game up until 70 minutes, Germany were left distraught. Rattled by the two quick goals, as they failed to gather any momentum to mount a comeback and force a penalty shootout.
Earlier, the India vs USA match saw 52,000 attendances in Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium but Kolkata surpassed that number with ease in the match between Brazil and Germany. Kolkata’s attendance was 66,613 last night.
In case you didn't know:
In Kolkata, every second person is a Brazil fan. Whenever Brazil play, the streets of Kolkata get filled with Brazil’s flags, jerseys etc. Kolkata and its infatuation with the elegant Brazilian football goes a long way back. In the 1970s, during World Cups, football fanatics would be glued to their radios to hear about the Brazil national team. When television sets arrived in the City of Joy during the World Cup in 1982, the Selecao were the adopted team of the city.
The Heart of the Matter:
The love for Brazil changed to a certain extent after the arrival of a certain Diego Maradona, Kolkata's love for Brazil never died down. It was always said that the people of Kolkata supported Brazil and Diego Maradona.
What’s Next:
Kolkata people now would wait for their Yellow heroes to come back for the final. The City of Joy will host the final of the tournament on 28th October and there is a chance of having Brazil back once again. If Brazil come back, the attendance might even surpass the last night’s attendance.
Author’s Take:
I am from Kolkata and was present last night at the Salt Lake stadium. It was a wonderful experience to see my city to turn up in a great number for the young champs. It will be interesting to see the attendance in Kolkata, if Brazil return for the final.
