The Brazilian Women’s National Team match against the United States on Tuesday (9) drew 50,402 fans to Arena Castelão in Fortaleza.
The match surpassed Brazil’s friendly against Jamaica at Arena Pernambuco in June 2024, which drew 33,272 people. It also became one of the largest crowds for women’s soccer in Brazil over the last 20 years.
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Among clubs, the record belongs to the 2024 Brasileirão final between Corinthians and São Paulo, with 44,529 spectators. In international competitions held in the country, the Olympics remain the clear leader.
The Olympic semifinal between Brazil and Sweden at the Maracanã in August 2016 had 70,454 spectators. Before that, the record was the women’s soccer final at the 2007 Pan American Games, between Brazil and the U.S., at the Maracanã in July 2007, with 67,788 people.
Playing at Castelão for the first time, the Brazilian National Team was welcomed with a huge celebration. While 500 people per minute were entering the stadium, fans already inside watched a quadrilha performance and a show by singer Solange.
Fans created a mosaic for Brazil’s debut at Castelão, in FortalezaCredits: Lívia Villas Boas/Staff Images/CBF
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In addition to a banner with the names of all the players, stretched between the upper and lower sections, there was also a “We will play together” mosaic during the national anthem.
The match comes after an important result for Brazil in the first friendly against the U.S. in São Paulo on Saturday (6), in which Brazil came from behind to win 2–1. The victory, the second straight under coach Arthur Elias, was the sixth in the history of matches against the Americans, who are ranked second in the FIFA rankings.
Before kickoff, CBF president Samir Xaud reaffirmed the importance of the event one year before the World Cup. “We are very happy with the presence and support of the fans. This is a pre-World Cup, these are friendlies that will prepare us for the first title,” he said. Until the tournament, coach Arthur Elias and the team will have four more FIFA international windows.
This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.
