Brazil + Holland = Great Atmosphere

Phew, it's a rest period. Nobody likes these intolerable two-day delays but it does give me a chance to catch up on the events of the World Cup.

Few fans in football create a better atmosphere than the Dutch and the Brazilians. Put the two together and you have the recipe for an outrageous match. The stadium wasn't packed, which perhaps isn't surprising; at this point even the cheap seats were USD 150. It was, however, very colorful and very vibrant. So much so that, for the first time I've seen, the chants and the singing were actually able to rival the vuvuzelas. Despite the passion of both sets of fans, the whole thing was very good natured. Brazilians and Dutchmen joked with each other and exchanged shirts and scarves.

Another plus was that I was sitting next to a bloke named Lars who, like me, had purchased the Denmark Team Series Ticket only to see them eliminated in the group stage. Despite our collective disappointment, I was at least able to practice my Danish a bit more.

Brazil, as ever, started well. They had a goal disallowed for offside before Felipe Melo played in a brilliant pass for Robinho. Melo quickly became the cause of Brazil's demise though, blocking his keeper and causing an own goal. Wesley Sneijder gave the Netherlands the lead with a rare header . . . he patted his head afterwards as if I say, yes I actually did head that in. The Netherlands didn't respond well to taking the lead, flopping around like crazy. Perhaps this frustration led to Melo to stamp on Robben and get sent off.

The Dutch fans were going insane, while the Brazilian fans were in the depths of despair. Much like Argentina against Germany, I think the Brazilians simply weren't used to going behind, especially not with 10 men. I really didn't stick around for the party. I absolutely ran out of the stadium, trying to get to a taxi ASAP so I wouldn't get caught in traffic before my flight. As it turned out, I got to the airport in plenty of time, but better safe than sorry!