When it comes to Brazil and football matches, they are not just a 90-minute game, but a global event. The kind where fans suddenly become ‘tactical analysts’ and group chats on WhatsApp become a sight of a competitive board meeting, with every misplaced pass being reacted to.
The parallel world of the football universe forgets peace and enters a state of nostalgia, expectation and optimism, and that is why the match between Brazil and Morocco that ended in a 1-1 draw left fans frustrated.
The version of Brazil where the script showed players dancing through the midfield and making opponents pray to all the gods...felt missing.
Because there are football matches and then there are historical football matches that should never be real, and after this match, Brazil fans are not shy of reflecting that feeling through meme wars on social media.
Morocco pressed, controlled, and dictated the game in a way that it even made the neutrals go, “wait… this is not how this is supposed to go.” The internet summed it up best: Morocco players were basically toying with Brazil however they pleased (users said “historical clip”; we say “Is this the new era of football?”).
The internet had a name for the 18-year-old Ayyoub Bouaddi: “Brazil midfield owner” because that’s exactly what happened. Every time Brazil tried to settle, to score, he was there, intercepting as if saying “not a chance”.
Another meme that hit the hardest was when one user reminisced, “Watching Brazil 70 to remember that we used to be the country of football.” (Is this how coping works?)
One user posted a video of Kylian Mbappé signing with the caption, “There used to be literal football gods playing for Brazil and now look at this”- a meme that, although it might evoke laughter, perhaps says that the Brazilian football gods have forgotten to leave behind the “how to play” manual.
“Neymar returning from injury only to find out the team is already on the plane back to Brazil” is the kind of meme that does not require an explanation (Brazil fans chanting “God be with us” in a corner).
One user probably had enough with just one match because of his fear of “If it’s already like this with Morocco, imagine if they have to face France or Argentina.”- a silent reflection of what every Brazil fan might be feeling all over the world. Because if Morocco can turn the midfield into a “no-entry zone” for Brazil, it will turn into a survival challenge for the team when playing against Argentina or France.
You know the feeling when you have to wake up early and end up with groggy eyes, mismatched socks and staring up into space; that’s how one user described Brazil’s match behaviour.
“Brazil acting like they woke up at 3:30 am to play this game”, to which one user replied, “I have work tomorrow and stayed up just to be pissed off!” (insert face palm emoji)
One meme took out the big guns and said, “I hope Joao Pedro is at home laughing. Imagine picking Matheus Cunha over this demon.”
At this point, you can picture Chelsea forward Joao Pedro sitting on his couch with popcorn, watching Brazil struggle.
Another meme highlighted how, in another dimension perhaps Kaka, Roberto Carlos and Ronaldo Nazário were watching the match in complete disbelief, wondering how the nation that once made football look like an art form now has supporters rewatching old highlights for emotional support.
Another meme captured the gap between Brazil’s reputation and Morocco’s reaction to it. Using the terrifying monster representing Brazil and SpongeBob, aka Morocco, looking at it with a bored expression, the message was clear: “Are you done? We’ve got a game to play.”
And perhaps this meme extravaganza has a clear message: Football has a funny way of humbling reputations because one day you might be the elite team everybody fears. Then the question arises: What happens when you are not?