Marlus Miguel was ten years old when his father took him to Pinheirão to watch the Brazilian team newly crowned five-time champions played in Curitiba in 2003 against Uruguay. What stood out the most that night were Ronaldo’s two goals in the 3-3 draw.
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“At the end of the game, it was really epic when Ronaldo scored the goal and tied the game. I remember it very well because when he scored the goal, he made that same gesture from the 2002 World Cup, shaking his index finger. That stayed in our memories, very memorable for us Brazilians,” the fan tells UmDois Esportes, 21 years later.
Now 31, Miguel will once again watch the yellow-and-yellow team up close, this time at Couto Pereira, his second home. A Coxa-branca, he has been a regular presence at the Alviverde’s games for over 15 years. But if the party atmosphere infected him during his childhood, today he fears the reaction of the stands if the team draws, as happened in 2003.
“The atmosphere in Brazil at that game, everyone was happy, everyone was shouting, because the team was coming off a fifth championship, completely different from today. Maybe, if Brazil draws or loses today, there will be boos,” he imagines.
“We’ve already had a negative sequence in the qualifiers, in the Copa América and we’re left with this itch in our ear. The Brazilians are fed up, always having a good team on paper and not performing,” says Miguel.
Kaka and Ronaldo’s goals
In addition to Miguel, another 23,463 people attended the stadium for the match that year. Of the 31,000 tickets available, 17,652 were sold. From the stands, fans watched Kaká open the scoring and Ronaldo extend the lead in the first half.
After the break, the game became electrifying when Uruguay turned the score around with three goals in 31 minutes. Close to injury time, Ronaldo managed to hold on to the equalizer and perform the celebration that has stuck in the memory of the Coxa-Branca.
If seeing a goal by Ronaldo from the stands was already an event, some even had the privilege of watching the Phenomenon in action from the edge of the pitch. Journalist Robson De Lazzari, from Transamerica Radiowas one of the reporters who was at the match.
“In 2003, I worked at CBN radio, and I was selected. Wow, I was very happy, just like now. I covered the entire week, from training to interviews”, recalls the journalist, who, during the match, worked alongside Carneiro Neto, now a columnist for UmDois Esportes.
“For me, it was very memorable because of everything that the Brazilian team represented. And at the time, even more so, since the year before they had been world champions for the past five years. What really stood out for me were Ronaldo’s two goals. There was him, Rivaldo, Kaká, that generation. It was incredible, you being there covering the match. It was a really cool memory,” he recalls.
Ticket to see the national team at the controversial Pinheirão was expensive
Prepared to receive the Brazilian team with a renovation that, according to archives from People’s Gazettecosting R$3 million at the time, Pinheirão was surrounded by controversy during the team’s arrival.
“Pinheirão was full of makeshift arrangements to hold that game within the fan statute, which was a requirement. Many things were not fulfilled, there were many complaints to Procon about the numbering of seats, of occupied seats, it was really a mess. Pinheirão was not the best choice”, says journalist Rodrigo Fernandes, who covered the team for Gazeta.
At the time, tickets were also expensive. The cheapest ticket cost R$60, which, adjusted for inflation, comes to R$236 today. The most expensive ticket cost R$200, which would be R$700 in today’s prices.
“It was a deal between Onaireves Moura and Ricardo Teixeira, the two who made the deal for the game to be in Curitiba, opened a training center behind Pinheirão, it was a collusion between the Paraná Federation and the CBF to bring this game and it had great results, the ticket was very expensive, the stadium was full and it ended up being a success in terms of revenue”, recalls Fernandes.
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The stadium underwent expansion, increasing the number of seats, the press area and the pitch were finished just hours before the start of the match. Even so, the structure was not adequate and even the athletes complained.
“We were talking about the best team on the planet at that time, with the best players, and Pinheirão was in a very bad state. I remember Ronaldo complaining about the locker room at the press conference. It was very depressing,” says the journalist.
The team returns at a different time, but the fans welcome it
Even though the last World Cup won by the Brazilian team is older than the last game in Curitiba, the gathering of the country’s best active players shook up the capital of Paraná.
In the team’s last performances, the poor results ended up creating friction between the players and the Brazilian fans. Therefore, these moments have been important to bring the team closer together.
“I think the relationship [entre seleção e torcida] It’s a little different, but it’s really due to the lack of titles. And from then on, there wasn’t, all of a sudden, as much shine, despite some great players. The relationship became a little more turbulent, more difficult because of this lack of titles”, says De Lazzari.
Throughout the week, hundreds of people gathered at the hotel where the delegation is staying to try to catch a glimpse of an athlete. At the training center, fans climbed onto cars and even trucks to try to catch a glimpse of the training sessions led by coach Dorival Júnior.
“What we are seeing here now, with tickets practically sold out, with everyone around the hotel wanting autographs, is that it is very special, it is very striking, it is different. Because Brazil still has incredible stars in world football and here, in the city, we have players who are recognized, from here and who shone here”, he adds.
This Friday, at 10pm, the Couto stadium is expected to be packed to host Brazil and Ecuador. Tickets are still expensive, but they have practically sold out. The stars of the match are Vini Júnior, Endrick, Rodrygo, Estêvão, among others, in this new cycle. And if the mood of the week continues, fans from Curitiba will be able to keep another good memory with the Brazilian team, 21 years later.