SAO PAULO – The host of the NFL's first game in Brazil, soccer club Corinthians, was not keen on the green-dominated color schemes of its Friday night visitors, the Green Bay Packers and the Philadelphia Eagles. But many fans at the NeoQuimica Arena didn't seem to mind.
And that included some supporters of Corinthians, a club that has tried for decades to avoid any reference to the color of its local rival Palmeiras.
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Excitement was evident in Sao Paulo for the second game of the 2024 NFL season and the league's first visit to South America.
Philadelphia and Green Bay, which both made the playoffs last season, delivered an entertaining game with plenty of offense for the Brazilian crowd. Saquon Barkley scored three touchdowns to lead the Eagles to a 34-29 victory.
Once the game began, it became clear there were three groups in attendance: Eagles supporters, Packers fans and those who were happy to cheer for either team. Local authorities estimated that roughly 20% of the expected crowd of 42,000 was from the United States.
Game officials, though, didn't get any sympathy. Insults in Portuguese chanted every weekend for soccer referees rang out whenever a divisive decision was made. Fans also gasped when Packers quarterback Jordan Love limped off the field with assistance after getting injured with 6 seconds left.
Before the game, Packers fan and schoolteacher Cody Armstrong, 32, told The Associated Press he spent much of the money he made over the summer to travel from Oakland, California, with three friends, including two Eagles fans. They were all dressed in green as they waited for their orders at a fast-food restaurant next to the stadium.
“Is it true that they don't like green here?” Armstrong said. “Well ... they will have to bear with us.”
Also dressed in green, the friends watched Kansas City's season-opening victory over Baltimore on Thursday night at a Sao Paulo bar, and they were excited to see so many locals enthusiastic about American football. Marketing experts have estimated there are 38 million fans of the sport in soccer-mad Brazil.
Bruno Silva, 37, bought an unofficial black Eagles jersey, which was being sold for about 50 Brazilian reals ($10) in a subway station near the stadium. A Corinthians fan, he said he would support Philadelphia — designated as the home team in Brazil — because it declined to wear green.
“This is our home,” said Silva, who started following the NFL five years ago. “We support who supports us.”
William Camargo, 39, also a Corinthians fan, showed up wearing a green Packers jersey, which many supporters of the soccer club would consider to be heresy.
“We like to say that Corinthians is owned by its fans. Green Bay is the same thing,” Camargo said of the community-owned franchise.
He said he became a fan of the Packers because of their former quarterback, Aaron Rodgers — whose jersey was a popular choice among fans in the stadium Friday night.
Other fans wore jerseys of other NFL teams, including New England, San Francisco, Buffalo and Baltimore.
Some were dressed out for a night out. Wearing a long blue dress, Narrima Oliveira, 34, attended with her boyfriend and was most interested in the halftime performance of Brazilian pop star Anitta.
“This feels like a party. We are going out to dance after this, too. I am not a football fan, but I can feel the joy that you guys have by watching it. It is a big celebration,” she said.
Local fans didn't appear too excited about listening to Anitta singing in English and Spanish.
The party could have been less rowdy if the Sao Paulo state government had not made a special authorization for in-stadium beer sales. Brazil rarely authorizes the sale of alcoholic beverages inside sporting venues to avoid violence among fans.
Russell Okung, who played for four teams over 11 NFL seasons, was among the attractions off the field Friday night. He joined other Brazilian practitioners of capoeira, an African-Brazilian martial art disguised as a dance, to perform in front of applauding fans at various spots outside the stadium.
“I love Brazil,” Okung told reporters before one of his several capoeira performances. “So glad the NFL made it here.”
Before kickoff, several Brazilian Olympic athletes saluted the crowd, including gymnast Rebeca Andrade and skateboarder Rayssa Leal, both Corinthians fans and medalists at the Paris Games.
Neither wore green.
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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb