The host's historic defeat last night at the hands of Germany has made all the front page news in Brazil, so here's a look at what they're saying.Â
It's been years in the making, and with hundreds of millions pumped into stadiums and facilities, Brazilian fans and players alike dreamed of lifting the trophy above their heads this Sunday in the Maracanã stadium, erasing memories of the 1950 debacle that later became known as the Maracanaço, haunting the legacy of the Brazilian football team to this day.
Last night, the dream came crashing down as Brazil suffered their worst ever defeat in a shock 7-1 loss to Germany, and they now have a new memory from 2014, nearly three-quarters of a century later, to replace the embarrassment of the previous Maracanaço.Â
The comparisons between the two events dominate the papers in Brazil today, as does the sense of shame and humiliation felt by the entire nation, who had been swept along in the tidal wave of World Cup fever that had gripped the nation in the last few weeks.Â
A few papers have already given this event the title of Mineiraço, given that the game was played in the Estádio Mineirão, with the Folha de São Paulo leading with that and the accompanying headline 'Massacred'.
¿Has visto las portadas de la prensa brasileña tras la humillación de ayer? https://t.co/ZREiw1DbOL pic.twitter.com/zvc4aEw5kF
— Ecoteuve (@Ecoteuve) July 9, 2014
The sense that this event is historic is also captured in many of the other headlines and front pages, with Correio Braziliense dubbing this a shaming that will be remembered for all eternity, while Lancenet have called this the worst embarrassment in the team's history.
Pic via CorreioBraziliense.com.br
Pic via Lancenet
Overall, the press went for a similar theme across all their front pages, with the paper edition of Lance going for a stark, blank page that reads "Indignation, revolt, pain, frustration, annoyance, embarrassment, pity, disillusion", and encourages readers to write in themselves what they're feeling on the front page, making their own headline.
Capa do LANCE! desta quarta: pic.twitter.com/D1Cw8rHapU
— Thiago Salata (@ThiagoSalata) July 9, 2014
Other papers such as O Dia and Hoje also went for simple yet effective front pages, with the former saying that shame is not strong enough to describe what happened, while the latter pictures the sixth star, which would have represented a sixth World Cup win, falling to the ground under the headline 'humiliation'.
Brazil waking to find the nightmare really happened. Some front pages: 'Vergonha' means shame I think (google thinks) pic.twitter.com/CarzSZitn5
— Daniel McDonnell (@McDonnellDan) July 9, 2014
Similar to Lance, Estado de Minas of Belo Horizonte went for a bare front page showing only one, inconsolable fan, asking readers if they actually want to be reminded of how bad it really was.
The protests in the run up to the event had somewhat lost momentum with the focus turning to the action on the pitch, but as the competition begins to wind up, and with Brazil not being in the final, the cost and the seeming lack of returns from the investment may well take centre stage again before the Cup comes to a close in the Maracanã this weekend.