This was my first time attending a soccer match ever and what better way than to attend my first game than during the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. The World Cup ticket lottery wasn’t kind to me and I managed to only grab 1 ticket for a match between Colombia vs. Greece at Mineirao Stadium in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil. I was super excited in every way possible and didn’t know what to expect.
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After I checked into the Estoril Hotel in Centro Belo Horizonte, I took a taxi to Mineirao Stadium (Estádio Mineirão). I could have taken a bus but there was absolutely no way because I was already running late due to my flight delay from Curitiba to Belo Horizonte International Airport.
The taxi driver informed me that the military police had blocked off the main road to Mineirao Stadium, so he would have to drop me off at the bridge and I could walk from there.
There were multiple police checkpoints along the way on the bridge to Mineirao Stadium.
Furthermore, I had to show my World Cup ticket to pass through each checkpoint.
Once I arrived at Mineirao Stadium, it was a breeze to get in because the match had already started and thankfully neither Colombia nor Greece had scored yet.
It seemed like everyone was dressed in yellow which is the color of Colombia’s jerseys. A lot of the yellow jerseys were of the national team Brazil which blended in quite nicely.
I barely noticed any Greek fans in attendance.
Colombia shut out Greece 3-0 to win the match and of course the Brazilians cheered for Colombia, their South American rivals.
I was surprised at how orderly the fans were exiting the stadium and everyone filed out to the streets. The hard part was catching any type of transportation back to downtown Belo Horizonte since buses were sparse and filled up quickly. Taxis were even harder to flag down since everyone was requesting them.
I had a lot of fun interacting with fellow Colombian fans and Brazilians alike. The energy throughout the entire match was amazing with chants, cheers, and people doing the wave from their seat. Every second was pure joy for me as I couldn’t believe I was actually at a World Cup soccer match. It was surreal and definitely nothing like watching a soccer game on TV. Attending the World Cup should be on everyone’s bucket list and I’m definitely planning on going to the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.
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