"It's totally forbidden to put a Brazil shirt on the Rocky statue in Philly!!!!!" That's not a superstition whispered between mates at a bar. That's an official warning from a major Brazilian fan group, plastered on Instagram before Friday's World Cup match against Haiti.
Brazil's Green and Yellow Movement saw what happened to Ecuador — dressed Rocky in a jersey, tied a flag around his neck, sang and danced on the steps — and then watched Amad Diallo score in the 90th minute to hand Ivory Coast a 1-0 win. Ecuador's tournament is over. Rocky's undefeated.
The curse has a track record
American football fans have been feeding the beast for years. Dress the statue, lose the game. It's happened enough times that Visit PA — the state's own tourism body — posted a deadpan warning to World Cup visitors: "Countless football teams have all dressed the Rocky Statue in their colors and gone on to lose. Ecuador dressed Rocky last weekend. Coincidence? Sadly, history says no."
So on Thursday afternoon, scores of Brazilian fans climbed the Philadelphia Museum of Art steps, threw their arms up in the air just like Rocky after a fight, and kept every last piece of green-and-yellow clothing firmly on their own bodies. Smart.
"This is a moment in Brazil," said Lorival Guerreiro, who flew in from Limeira for the tournament. "They promote this place to celebrate before the game." Roberto De Freitas, attending his third World Cup, hadn't heard of the curse when he arrived — but once he did, the decision was instant. "I'm for sure not going to do it," he said, laughing.
Brazil can't afford to tempt fate
The laughs are fine, but the underlying situation is less comfortable for Brazil. They came into this World Cup carrying the weight of a 23-year title drought and were held to a 1-1 draw by Morocco in their opener — outplayed for long stretches before Vinícius Júnior bailed them out. A five-time world champion scraping a point against Morocco is not the form of a tournament favorite, and the odds on Brazil lifting the trophy should reflect that shakiness.
Haiti are heavy underdogs on paper. But as Wyclef Jean put it on social media: "Brazil has the pressure. Haiti has the freedom. And sometimes freedom is the most dangerous thing on the pitch."
He's not wrong. Rocky was always the underdog too.
