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SAO PAULO — When Brazil’s soccer team played its first match in the World Cup, a neighborhood in Sao Paulo appeared to be abandoned.
That all changed when Brazil scored its first goal. The seemingly silent city erupted with a growing roar as the realization of what just happened spread. The celebration included fireworks, loud horns called vuvulezas and lots of cheers.
Resident Claus Wahlers captured the city’s euphoria after each goal in Brazil’s 3-2 victory over Croatia on Thursday in a video. It appears almost everyone in the neighborhood was watching the game — moving cars and people rarely appear on the streets.
The video offers a fun glimpse into what it’s like to experience the World Cup in other countries. Soccer’s popularity is still growing in the U.S., but it is a powerful force to unify communities during the tournament in many parts of the world.
