São Paulo – Come World Cup time, Lebanon gets greener and yellower on account of the Brazilian national team. The colors of other countries also pop up on the streets, like Germany’s, but Brazil is one of the teams closest to the hearts of Lebanese people when it comes to soccer. “Most people here root for Brazil,” says the Brazilian expatriate Karla Rizk Jaalouk, who chairs over Grupo Amizade Brasil no Líbano (the Brazil in Lebanon Friendship Group).
The group brings the Brazilian community together, acquaintances and family, to cheer for their teams during the Cup. In Brazil’s first match, on Sunday, June 17, some 150 people got together on the terrace of Beirut’s Outdoor restaurant to watch. There was a Brazilian-themed décor, caipirinha to drink, live samba music and drumming. Invitations ran out quickly, according to Karla.
Brazil’s second game happened at daytime on a Friday, a workday in Lebanon, so there were no events, but this Wednesday (27), by game time it will be night in Lebanon (9 pm in Beirut), and the Brazilian fans were slated to gather on the Outdoor’s terrace again. “Invites ran out in less than 24 hours,” says Karla.
In Lebanon, people are in the habit of adorning their cars with the colors of their World Cup teams. “My car is all propped up, people will honk their horns,” she says. Besides the actions by Karla’s group, fans get together elsewhere, including the Beqaa Valley, which is home to a major Brazilian community.
The chairwoman of Grupo Amizade Brasil no Líbano believes that after Brazil, the second biggest team in Lebanon is Germany. According to Karla, several restaurants will open their doors to people rooting for different countries during the World Cup. “They await the World Cup eagerly around these parts.”.
The group is waiting for the dates and hours of upcoming Brazilian team matches before scheduling new events. The plan is to get more people in a bigger space. Brazil is leading its Group and needs only a tie against Serbia to move on to the round of sixteen.
Grupo Amizade Brasil no Líbano was created over 20 years ago. It’s the most numerous group within the Brazilian community in Lebanon, according to Karla. The philanthropical group works to integrate Brazilians who reside or arrive in Lebanon. It also engages in social work, the latest of which was to collect canes to donate to an NGO that caters to blind children.
Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
