Soccer World Cup: Japan loses to Brazil, the streets of Sao Paulo erupt in cheers

On the 29th (early morning of the 30th Japan time), the Japanese soccer team of the World Cup faced the powerful Brazil in the first round of the final tournament, and suffered a come-from-behind loss 1-2. Japan is ranked 18th in the world, while Brazil is ranked 6th. Japan scored the first goal, but fell short. How did the people of the "soccer kingdom," which boasts five World Cup championships, the most in history, view this match?

Sao Paulo, Brazil's largest city. About 200 people watched the match broadcast on a giant screen in a bar on the main street, while hundreds of others on the street who couldn't get into the bar watched the game.

When the match ended with Brazil winning, everyone jumped up and down, pumped their fists, and cheered loudly. Some people hugged each other and were in tears. The sound of vuvuzelas rang out all around.

Raffaella Borges (24), her eyes wet, said, ``I thought Brazil would win, but I was impressed by how strong Japan was.'' "I'm glad Brazil was able to score at the last minute. I still can't stop crying."

The game started at 2 a.m. Japan time on the 30th in Houston in the southern United States. In São Paulo, located on the opposite side of the world from Japan, the time was exactly the opposite, at 2pm on the 29th, and many companies and schools were forced to work from home or take holidays. According to local media, there was a huge traffic jam in the city an hour before the game started as people who had taken off work in the afternoon returned home en masse.

Japan took the lead, Brazilian people stiffened

In the city, even before the game started...