"These are images of the the final game of the 1950 Soccer World Cup." "It was disputed between Uruguay and Brazil at the Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro." "People say it was the most exciting soccer match in history." "This play not only changed the destiny of the men on the field it also left its mark on two nations." "At that time Uruguayan society was still living an economic boom." "It was a place with strong social integration a place where the level of poverty and the level of marginality were relatively minors." "It was a country with the lowest numbers of inequality ever recorded." "It was a happy country." "Soccer and society had a very solid connection." "The relation between a happy Uruguay and a country that had bet on soccer on such of epic proportion made for a great relationship." "The oriental nation's pride for soccer was very strong and it originated in the 1910s and the 1920s." "The most important event happened in 1924 Uruguay goes to the first FIFA organized championship as part of the Olympic tournament." "...where unexpectedly they became..." "Olympic champions." "Same thing happened in Amsterdam in 1928 where they got their second world champion title in the Olympic games." "Uruguay organizes everything so Montevideo hosts the first World Cup." "Against all odds the stadium was built, the Cup took place... and Uruguay became champion." "After these triumphs the golden age of Uruguayan soccer became a thing of the past." "URUGUAYAN SOCCER IN CRISIS" "BAD RESULTS CONTINUE FOR THE LIGHT BLUE TEAM." "Uruguay was coming from an inmense soccer crisis over a decade long." "1945 to 1948 gave the worst results in Uruguayan soccer history." "Basicallythe crisis wasn't just the soccer issue, it was also institutional and the players were the most affected." "This determines the shutdown of Uruguayan football at the assembly of October 1948." "Players had no defenses before that managers and soccer clubs did what they wanted." "The strike was essentially to consolidate greater dignity towards soccer players." "There were club owners that boasted that they had never shaken a player's hand." "Obdulio Varela perhaps was the first that clearly defined..." "Any manager will speak to me in a formal manner like we are equals." "The team was owner and master of that player as if you were worthless we were still in the age of slaves." "He seemed like a natural leader during the strike he was a sort of a popular symbol." "Someone had to carry the flag." "And it was you?" "Who else?" "They asked me and someone had to carry the flag." "As the strike went on..." "Obdulio had to go back to a construction job like he did in his youth when he didn't have money." "He lived on the street since he was eight and his last name his real last name wasn't Varela it was Muiños Muiños Varela." "I asked him:" "Why was that?" "He said:" "My motherwas black and a washerwoman and myfatherwas white and a scavenger." "He was impressed by her mother's honesty." "The only fun was getting togetherwith friends on the streets." "On the paddocks with rag and paper balls." "He started to like soccer." "He started his professional career in 1938 in 1949 he became the national team's captain and one of the union leaders that brought Uruguayan soccerto a halt." "SEVEN MONTHS WITHOUT SOCCER NO END TO CONFLICT ON SIGHT" "SEVEN MONTHS WITHOUT SOCCER NO END TO CONFLICT ON SIGHT The strike goes on for a long time at one point in the beginning of 1949..." "THERE WILL BE SANCTIONS TO STRIKERS ...at one point in the beginning of 1949..." "THERE WILL BE SANCTIONS TO STRIKERS The teams tried to go overthe strike..." "A.U.F. ANNOUNCES SANCTIONS FOR PLAYERS." "A.U.F. ANNOUNCES SANCTIONS FOR PLAYERS." "...and pressure began to mount." "THE STRIKE WILL GO ON PLAYERS WON'TCONCEDE TO THREATS" "THE STRIKE WILL GO ON PLAYERS WON'TCONCEDE TO THREATS The players held their position..." "THE STRIKE WILL GO ON PLAYERS WON'TCONCEDE TO THREATS ...asking for a series of demands that were part of a long list." "Players were untouchables to the public eye and the government didn't know how to handle Godlike players in the union becoming a complex issue." "Team managers had to concede to a lot of the player's demands." "This meant an end to the slavery regime they had to play in." "The strike for me was everything because... it was like winning a South American championship." "It was a moment of happiness in Brazil of movement." "Acountry that was moving towards a new era." "Brazil became mainstream..." "That Zé Carioca thing, Carmen Miranda." "It was an exciting moment." "On the political front, the 1950 campaign it's a clear moment of division in Brazilian society." "Amoment in which the world views clearly radicalized." "In front of the mobilization of the moral and material forces of the Nation serves to proclaim the Brazilian people." "One of the values with which Brazil... dreamt of being the country of the future, was soccer." "Everything revolved around soccer." "There was always political exploitation without a doubt." "Inspired bythe Italian fascism system." "Afterthe warwas over, FIFA met in Paris to discuss where the next World Cup would take place." "After many discussions, Brazil became the host." "Brazil was a continent." "Wanted to be a world power at any cost." "Building the Maracana the biggest stadium in the world, in just two years." "It was a chance to prove the strength and determination of the Brazilian man" "Building the Maracana was a patriotic attitude so Brazil could become world champion." "It was a huge effort in the workforce it was almost slave work." "From the beginning we were staying at a house called the house of the arches a millionaire's home that was really beautiful." "Back in the 50's, few people had cars not even the press had cars." "We were there, really isolated besides some older people that gave orders." "Flavio Costa, the Brazilian team's coach was the one that decided the menu forthe players what time they slept which movies they saw." "He was the almighty of brazilian soccer." "He even thought of running for mayor here confident of the fact that Brazil would win the World Cup." "The national team was in a tough position they had no financial budget they had no coach and players didn't show up for training." "But the biggest problem... was Obdulio's absence who refused to play with the team unless he got a job in public office." "Amidst that chaos several friendly matches were played." "The Uruguayan team was physically bad it wasn't ready there were a few players that didn't play, because they were out of shape." "It was a national team that, well it sort of stumbled itself together..." "The whole stadium was whistling at us." "We played terribly." "Looking at the terrible situation president Batlle asked to solve Obdulio's problem." "Obdulio said:" "I am 36 yrs old and I don't have anything." "Promise me a job that's all I ask." "Don't worry Obdulio you'll have a job." "From that moment on Obdulio goes to the training camp and becomes the team's leader again." "We always called him Mr. Obdulio we were respectful towards him." "Obdulio wanted to bridge the gap left bythe strike within the team." "Most of the players were thought of as sheep..." "Matías González was one of them a very important defender in the team." "Obdulio Varela called for a meeting at the bar in the corner, having a beer Matías González walks in he goes to the end of the bar and grabs a beer Obdulio sees him and calls him says all that negative stuff is over we are all Uruguayans and friends let's drink a beer together and that was the end of it." "Few people went to the airport, they were hopeless." "People said we don't have a chance to win." "We knew that the team wasn't playing well and you have no public support when you keep losing." "Julio gave me great confidence." "He said if we win, we'll get married when I come back." "We'll get married?" "Ok." "Twelve teams from all over the world came to Brazil..." "From the old world:" "England, Spain, Switzerland," "Sweden, Yugoslavia and Italy." "FromAmerica there was the United States team..." "Mexico, Chile, Paraguay, Bolivia and Uruguay." "The English team were favorites that were participating in the World Cup forthe first time." "And Italy, who was the champion in 1938." "But they lost big part of the team on a tragic plane crash." "In 1950 they decided to travel to Brazil by ship." "It was nice on a neighborhood street with no traffic it wasn't luxurious, it was humble." "Afterwe settled in the hotel we went to see the World Cup opening match between Mexico and Brazil." "The line to get into the stadium was infernal I've never seen so many people together." "The stadium opened with the World Cup and that's where the era of the Maracana began." "The opening ceremony was perfect and was a first victory forthe government." "It was sensational." "Facing 125 thousand people wasn't easy..." "Difficult, right?" "Maneca passes to Friaca." "Attention." "Friaca centers the ball..." "Baltazar jumps, heads." "Score!" "Brazil scores!" "Baltazarwith head goal!" "Brazil scores!" "Jair has the ball, pass to Baltazar..." "Baltazar to Maneca, Maneca goes to the right, Ademir controls it dribbles Uchoa gives it to Jair, who gets close to the goal, kicks and score!" "Brazil scores!" "Jair makes 100 thousand people vibrate in the Rio de Janeiro Stadium!" "The mexicans are covering their ears so they don't hearthem." "There was no problem at all." "It was a small challenge." "It was good, we are going forward!" "At that time there was a big rivalry between Cariocas and Paulistas." "Most of the national team players were cariocas they had no support from the paulistas." "The paulista media pressured Flavio Costa." "He had to put paulista players in the national team." "Danilo went out and Rui went in." "Bigode went our and Noronha went in." "They got what they wanted." "The match is over and it's a tie." "The brazilian team is booed at the Pacaembu stadium." "The brazilian team had another match in Rio de Janeiro and public attendance was again impressive." "Brazil had a chance to advance to the next round against the powerful Yugoslavia." "Danilo passes the ball to Zizinho he gets closerto the center, prepares the shot and kicks..." "Score!" "Brazil scores!" "Brazil scores!" "Gives it back to Bauer." "BauertoAdemir." "Ademirto Jair." "Jair prepares and kicks..." "Score!" "Brazil!" "Zizinho!" "We played the way we wanted and people recovered their faith in the team." "There was pure joy on the streets." "The brazilian people were enthusiastic." "As days went by friendships were made by the time the championship came around, we'd bonded." "Obdulio really caught my attention he was a special guy..." "Obdulio was always the same he always used to go for a walk, at any time." "He walked and walked, he was a man that walked a lot..." "And you never knew when he was coming back." "When he grabbed his uruguayan tea and started whistling, you couldn't bother him..." "I used to look at him and he said:" "What are you looking at?" "Okay boss, I won't say anything." "He was very simple simple and crude but he was a fantastic guy." "He felt he was responsible for all the players and the players saw themselves in his figure." "He used to talk to them a lot." "We had a great time there we had no problems we were waiting to debut, right?" "Ourfirst game was in Belo Horizonte against Bolivia..." "Some were a bit nervous, because it was ourfirst game." "For me it was an opportunity being in the national team and going in to play, was fantastic for me." "It was as if I could touch the sky with my hands." "Winning against Bolivia would take us into the quarter-finals." "We got nervous because we didn't know what could happen in the first minutes but afterwe started scoring we saw it was easy." "We could score, maybe 15 goals." "Everyone scored." "Miguez two, Ghiggia two and Vidal, all of them." "Julio Perez hadn't scored..." "Miguez gives him the ball and tells him go ahead, score and he did." "8 to 0" "At that moment management came in and told us we were off until midnight." "We were happyto go out and celebrate." "Obdulio was the only one that stayed at the hotel." "He was standing by doorwhen we got back in." "He said:" "Okay guys we have to stick to our schedule." "Let this be the first and last time this happens." "It was a harshly scold." "He didn't insult your or anything like that..." "He moved you, because he talked to your heart and soul." "The quarter-finals format was all against all." "Besides Uruguay and Brazil Spain had also classified." "Who surprised everyone by leaving England out of the Cup." "And Sweden who eliminated Italy." "Gifts came non stop to our training camp..." "Watches, fabrics, kitchen sets glassware from Czechoslovakia, costume jewelry and many other things." "And forthe star players even more." "There was a prize." "Aprize we would get." "Astore in the Catumbi neighborhood offered... a car!" "The World Cup made the country explode and with that patriotism grew." "We had a really nice game, right?" "But we had to go in hard." "There was no room for nice." "The Brazilian team plays much better." "Prepares a deep pass... he's turning..." "Ademir is covered but shoots." "Score!" "Ademir kicks it, the ball hits Oswaldo..." "Ademir goes in and kicks..." "Score!" "Brazil scores!" "Chico gets closer, brings the ball down, dribbles kicks and score!" "Brazil scores!" "It was something that was worked progressively and worked flawlessly." "As the tournament went on, the team solidified." "That match against Sweden was a massacre: 7 to 1 for Brazil." "The team found itself." "To play against Spain, we had to travel to Sao Paulo." "Most of them travelled bytrain, because they were scared of flying." "But the trip was 20, 23 hours long." "But the plane flies too high." "I was scared of flying." "Ourtraining camp in Sao Paulo was really nice and very quiet." "Our only method of communication with Montevideo was through letters..." "Some of them didn't know how to read and needed help." "I have an enormous amount of postcards." "Postcards that were how can I tell you?" "Like love verses that he sent me from every place." "Spain came with bettertraining techniques than us we were still some steps behind at that time." "The stadium was almost full that day." "There was much anticipation to see the Spanish team." "The matches against European teams were very difficult." "There was no television, or video..." "We went in and played with what we had." "They played really well, they had Basora," "Gainsa, they had Sarra they had Gonzalo Segundo." "Besides, their goalkeeperwas fantastic, like an acrobat he rolled on the floor and came out kicking." "Score is 0 to 0 and it's drizzling, in front of 45 thousand people." "Juan Carlos González to Pérez" "Julio Pérez to Ghiggia" "Ghiggia gets closer to the goal." "Kicks and score!" "Uruguay scores!" "Score!" "Right striker Ghiggia scores!" "After just 29 minutes." "The veryfew fans from Uruguayan that were there were very thrilled with us." "With a chance of improving, Uruguay 1 Spain 0" "Molowny advances with the ball, centers the ball Basora jumps, heads the ball..." "Score." "Spain scores!" "I don't know what happened but in just a moment, they scored two goals." "Score!" "The Spanish team scores!" "The Uruguayan defense apparently got comfortable too soon." "Mr. Griffith whistles and the first half is over." "With Spain leading temporarily 2 to 1." "The only ones, who believed in us, were ourselves." "Even more having a strong captain like Obdulio Varela." "If you sayto Obdulio that he was going to lose he'd probably choke you to death." "Really." "We came out attacking with everything but it was impossible to score against goalkeeper Ramallet." "Uruguay was desperate, they were losing 2 to 1 and was also losing the chance of being world champions." "We couldn't get through the goalkeeper." "You would get close and he blocked you." "I broke three of Ramallet ribs." "There were only minutes left." "Very few minutes." "I moved, Obdulio asked forthe ball, I gave it to him." "He shoots from a distance." "Score!" "Score!" "Uruguay scores!" "Obdulio Varela." "It was just by chance the ball escapes Ramallet's hands it's just how soccerworks." "We knew we had to win but there was no chance." "Obdulio left the game crying over losing one point and because he was letting his people down he was held responsible." "Nobody likes to lose and this is a country that demands winning, always." "All the presidential candidates and other politicians, wanted to be part of history." "They promised political post to the players..." "Barbosa andAdemirwere proposed as Mayors... and Jair as councilman." "Forthe match against Spain, people came from all over Brazil." "The whole country identified with the national team." "It was a great performance." "People were dancing." "Back then there were no fans like those that do "the wave" but they did one anyway..." "They sang, the public sang and the players." "They seemed to play to the rythm of the music." "It was just the most beautiful show." "Brazil defeated Spain 6 to 1." "Brazilians felt like champions." "I had faith I wasn't sure Uruguaywould win but I saw them playing, having fun chatting." "It was a team that had bonded spiritually." "The only way we had a chance to get to the last match against Brazil was winning against Sweden." "Anderson sends the ball to the penalty area..." "Jhonson and Mellberg jump..." "Mellberg shoots towards the goal and scores." "Sweden scores." "Mellberg shoots five minutes into the game against Uruguay and Sweden scores." "Ghiggia eludes Gard Ghiggia attacks, goes inside he's going to shoot, shoots at the goal..." "Score!" "Score!" "Uruguay scores!" "When the first half was over we were losing 2 to 1." "Brazilian fans cheered we then knew, they were rooting for Sweden." "We didn't have a team to win by a big margin we couldn't do what Brazil was doing." "We had to fight in order to win." "One of the traits of the Uruguayan team was they refused to lose they had to win." "The Swedish were stronger and they used their body." "If the fact that theywere stronger than us was reason for us to lose we had to play even stronger." "Uruguayans have courage and blood even if you pull their eyes break their teeth their jaw they always go forward." "With 15 minutes left, we were losing 2 to 1." "The public was guilty it made us feel the honor of what we had to do." "That's where the team pumped itself up." "Schiaffino advances, Pérez and Míguez position themselves." "Pérez supports and stands near the goal Míguez supports, goes in, shoots..." "Score!" "Uruguay scores!" "Míguez ties the game forthe Uruguayan team." "The Uruguayan team goes forward..." "Varela lifts the ball from a free kick the ball falls into the goal area Schiaffino jumps, they push him, the goal is empty..." "Score!" "Uruguay scores!" "Míguez!" "Míguez just scored the third goal." "Obdulio was booed from the field he kissed his shirt and showed it to the public." "People in Uruguay were still skeptical." "Most of them thought we didn't have a chance." "It was logical, the only way they would become champions was to beat the impressive Brazilian team in the Maracana." "Something, basically impossible." "Around those days, people in the streets of Rio started using the greeting..." ""HELLO, WORLD CHAMPION"" "Ourteam is practically champion they just need a tie to secure the title." "Being the best team in the world, it should be that way for sure." "Players would get the newspapers so they knew what was going on outside." "Acouple of days before the final." "Flavio Costa told us something that changed the situation completely." "Then, without telling anyone I moved to San Januario." "And we had a quiet evening there a quiet morning in San Januario." "In San Januario we were toys in the hands of politicians." "It was lots of ins and outs." "There was a popular newspaper in Rio de Janeiro that published on theirfront page a picture of the Brazilian team with the title "Champions"" "THESEARE THE CHAMPIONS" "We were relaxed..." "Obdulio walks in and slams the door and throws the newspaper to the wall." "We honestly didn't know what was going." "We opened the paper and read and we all got angry." "It bothered us that people inside the team thought that four managers and two reporters had returned to Montevideo before the final." "I went to the Luxor hotel barbershop a managerwas there and asked me about the result." "I told him we will win, 2 to 1." "You are still just the same, I didn't know what he said." "Theywould score 4 or 5 against us." "Omar left and Obdulio saw Omar come with his head bowed." "And asks him what's wrong with you?" "He replied, nothing's wrong." "Something happened to you, what happened?" "When he told him, Obdulio was furious and said that managers were good for nothing and that we were going to be champions." "The day of the final, Rio was covered with religious "offerings"." "They wanted to secure the Brazilian victory." "Thousands of people camped around the Maracana." "All the preparations forthe celebration were taking place underthe tribunes." "Dozens of samba schools were preparing the caravan forthe champions." "That day, the Maracana held more than 200 thousand souls." "The largest number of public gathered in the history of the sport." "The noise from people going into the stadium was deafening." "The locker trembled." "You play in a country that's not yours..." "You can't you can't expect them to give you cupcakes..." "Isn't that right?" "If they give you anything, perhaps a firecracker, a bomb." "Were you scared?" "Never." "At game time the streets of Montevideo were desserted." "You couldn't see anyone, basically." "Everyone was gathered around the radios." "Good afternoon countrymen, friends." "In the colossal Maracana Municipal Stadium in Rio de Janeiro." "In front of a crowd..." "For me it's an indelible memory... and all Uruguayans that attended the match thanks to the magic voice of Solé." "We remain upright and hope in our heart with the Uruguayan players..." "I was embroidering tablecloths to get married embroidered tablecloth and listened to the game." "When we were going out to the field Obdulio looked at us and said the only people playing are on the field." "He had the abilityto enter along with them." "It was joyful, an applause, as if theywere cheering us." "The day of the Brazil-Uruguay match all the people that you can imagine were there." "The governor, the Secretary of Culture the President of the Republic." "All of them were there." "The mayor of Rio de Janeiro who considered himself the owner of the stadium." "Gave a speech right before the match." "Brazilians, in a few moments you will become World Champions." "You, that have no rivals in the whole planet." "You, who I salute as winners." "I fulfilled my promise to build this stadium..." "Now do your duty." "Winning the World Cup!" "He told us:" "You the champions..." "What a fool!" "Right?" "You think the World Cup is a sport celebration?" "It's a sport war." "Nothing is respected there." "Through the Brazilian centerforward Ademir... 2:45pm and Ademir moves the ball who moves the ball to the right in Zizinho's direction." "Zizinho advances towards Tejera, who sends the ball to Ademir..." "Ademir comes back and Juvenal shoots the ball towards Uruguay's territory." "Tejera gives it back in a short pass Bauertakes it shoots in the area runs to grab Rodríguez..." "Friaça sends a centering pass Ademir picks it up and the shot is deflected." "They entered emboldened because they were the great favorites and they had to answer to all of those people that encouraged them the way they did." "We are not screwed, eh!" "We played the way we had to play with them." "From faith to faith." "They had faith, so did we." "What happens is that the Uruguayan player has a lot of pride." "They go to the stadium and they don't want to lose." "Then they put in that same love that need to win." "Just as that play came, I gave it everything as it was in soccer, towards the ball and towards the player." "At one point Bigode hit me really hard..." "Obdulio came over, touched his face and reproached him." ""Look, don't mess with the young ones"" "If not, we are coming after you." "Actually he just gave a slap on the neck and Obdulio Varela said to me:" "Calm down guy." "Just that." "Referee Mr. Readers just blew his whistle to end the first half of the game between Brazil and Uruguay." "It ended 0 to 0." "They failed to open the score despite the dangerous Brazilian offense." "Forthe Uruguayan defense remained upright against the great performer." "We had breathed for 45 minutes wihout a goal from Brazil." "With a 0-0 tie." "It was more than positive for us." "Ourteam was playing great but we couldn't score a goal." "We were sure we could do it at any given moment." "Ademir recovers the ball Ademir attacks and ends at the entrance of the area." "Pushes it towards Friaça." "Attention!" "Shoots and... score!" "Brazil scores!" "Friaça!" "Brazil scores!" "Friaça!" "One minute into the second half." "When they scored their goal I thought it was difficult we would lose, even if we tie." "We truly thought we couldn't win." "I saw Obdulio heading towards the linesman to complain that it had been offside." "He wanted to cool game." "He spent 2-3 minutes talking with the ball under his arm." "He said:" "If I give the ball back right away to the tigers they'll eat us." "The referees were English." "He didn't speak English." "The British didn't speak Spanish." "How would they understand him?" "Incidentally there was a dialogue with the crowd." "He faced everything on his own that world that was surrounding him with the certainty that their country would be champion." "If you go inside a field you need to look at nothing else but victory." "Whatever is around you... doesn't come in to play?" "Doesn't come in to play." "The only ones that play are the ones inside the field." "Obdulio said, okay guys we have to come out and win." "And we started attacking." "Julio Pérez over the Brazilian defenders feints again and passes the ball to Míguez the striker." "Shoots towards the goal it hits the posts." "Míguez hard shot hits the post." "I felt so sad that I started crying." "I got on my knees and prayed to God..." "Dear Lord, please give us a hand." "Don't let us lose." "Ghiggia continues attacking slowly he advances but is followed by Bigode who he manages to dominate, with class and skills." "Ghiggia feints, now Pérez Pérez to Ghiggia runs towards the goal sends a centering pass to Schiaffino..." "Score!" "Score!" "Uruguay scores!" "Schiaffino scores!" "Schiaffino at minute 21." "That sublime moment..." "I always said that I got lucky." "I hit the ball poorly." "Because I was forced to shoot and put it in the angle." "There was silence in the Maracana that terrified our players..." "They felt responsible forthe disgrace to see that crowd all of them silent..." "The first rivals the Brazilians had was the public." "Because when we tied, they realized they could lose." "I touched the Brazilian players and they were cold." "The environment outside the field, held them back completely." "We had to win." "Everyone wants to win you had to do anything to win." "Because we are like this, like this, we are rebellious by birth." "He escapes Bigode..." "The Uruguayan team advances through Ghiggia..." "Ghiggia goes in dominating the ball the fast Uruguayan right striker advances enters, he's going to shoot, shoots..." "Score!" "Score!" "Score!" "Uruguay scores!" "Ghiggia shoots really hard and the ball escapes Barbosa." "34 minutes making the second goal for the Uruguayan team." "That makes you really happy, you know?" "You think about yourfamily, yourfriends that's what I felt." "So sad, isn't it?" "It is." "I think I never heard bigger silence like the one that day... 200 thousand people were silent..." "There's only 1:50 left in the game Zizinho has the ball..." "Zizinho to Chico the striker Gambetta follows Chico..." "Jairfeints, he's going to shoot, shoots the ball is out and it's corner against Uruguay." "I repeat, this game is about to be over." "Friaça is going to shoot the corner..." "Uruguay 2 Brazil 1" "Here comes the corner game over, the match is over!" "Uruguay is the champion!" "The match just ended in Rio de Janeiro." "Uruguay, ladies and gentleman, listeners of radio Sarandi is a fourth time champion." "You can't imagine the excitement... the joy, it's something indescribable that comes from the chest to the throat." "Compatriots I can't deny that I am shedding tears of joy." "To tell you, overjoyed that we are world champions." "We are rightfully world champions honorably." "The celebration was actually for them everything was scheduled forthem." "They were so sure, that Jules Rimet had the Cup just to give it to the Brazilian captain." "He didn't know who to give the Cup to he stood still and what happened?" "I had to take it off his hands." "I saw everyone cry then I felt like crying as well..." "What's happening?" "This is a soccer match." "And yet it seemed like a tragedy." "Aterrible sadness." "2 or 3 people threw themselves from our side of the tribune I don't know how many died." "Brazilian players went from being national heroes to to national disgrace." "I couldn't sleep at home I had nightmares." "I need a minute." "Goalkeeper Barbosa was haunted for his mistake the rest of his life." "What's the maximum sentence in Brazil?" "Thirty years right?" "Aguy has to serve Thirty years I said, I already served 43 years." "That's ten to fourteen years more that I served." "The time to celebrate and enjoy had arrived but the managers didn't leave any money for dinner at the hotel." "So we decided to all pitch money bought sandwiches, beers and went to one of the rooms to celebrate." "Obdulio Varela didn't stay forthe celebration and went to roam the bars in Rio the few bars that were opened that night of the defeat." "He went on drinking, bar after bar and finding people crying." "He felt really bad." "He said to me:" "I felt bad how could I do this to such good people?" "And he went on drinking and embracing the defeated." "President Batlle sent a plane to bring back the champions quickly because the country was waiting forthem." "Alot of people came to greet us and accompanied us in a long caravan." "The players were idolized." "However a lot of them died in poverty." "Obdulio escaped the celebration that afternoon and from that moment on, he stood away from the spotlight and recognition." "This victory became a fundamental trait of Uruguayan identity." "The country never matched the achievement and lives..." "URUGUAYANS CHAMPIONS ...under its shadow..." "URUGUAYANS CHAMPIONS ...until now." "URUGUAYANS CHAMPIONS"