FIFA World cup fever is all around and over the next month,
hundreds of millions of people around the world will watch the 2014 World Cup tournament
in Brazil. There are many who know about
the football but there are few who know about Brazil, So let’s throw some
limelight on Brazil and some interesting facts of World Cup 2014.
Fascinating facts about
the magical country Brazil and FIFA World cup 2014.
- Brazil is the fifth largest country in the world.
- The name Brazil comes from a tree named brazil wood.
- The capital of Brazil is Brasilia.
- Portuguese is the official and most widely spoken language.
- Brazil’s motto is “Ordem e Progresso”, meaning "Order and Progress".
- Brazil currency is Brazilian real R$.
- The Brazilian flag is green with a yellow rhombus (or diamond). Inside the rhombus is a blue globe with 27 stars. Green represents the forests, while the yellow represents the mineral wealth of Brazil. The blue circle and stars represent sky over Rio de Janeiro. There is one star to represent each of the states.
- The statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro weighs 635 tonnes, is 38 metres high including its pedestal and was named one of the “New Seven Wonders of the World” in 2007.
- Brazil has more than 4,000 airports more than any other country other than the US.
- The most popular surname in Brazil is Silva.
- Osama Bin Laden-themed bars are something of a trend in Brazil.
- In Brazil they drive on the right-hand side of the road.
- The Amazon River flows through Brazil, it is the 2nd longest river in the world (after the Nile).
- Brazil has one of the fastest growing economies. It has an annual growth rate of 5%.
- The country has the ninth highest number of billionaires in the world.
- It also stands tenth highest in the list of vehicle owners in the world.
- Brazil is considered to have the largest collection of beautiful and unusual flowers.
- One of the world’s super foods, the Acai berry is grown in Brazil
- The world’s best and most delicious coffee is produced in Brazil.
- Besides a “W” for women and “M” for males, they will soon be putting a “T” on washroom doors for the many transsexuals that live there.
- Women usually kiss each other on their cheeks. Twice when both are married, three times when one of them is single. On this case, the married one says "Tres, pra casar!, meaning “three kisses, for you to get married".
- Caipirinhas are the national drink of Brazilians.
- Brazilian models are generally considered to be some of the most gorgeous women in the world.
- The Brazilian bikini wax was invented in New York in 1987 by seven Brazilian-born sisters.
- The World Cup is held every four years.
- The Brazilians love their footie so much that the banks will shut down three hours before each match.
- The official balls used during this year's event will be the Adidas Brazuca
- The tournament will see the 32 nations taking part in a total of 64 matches which is bifurcated according to zones
Hosts: Brazil
South
America: Argentina, Colombia,
Ecuador, Chile and Uruguay
North/Central
America and Caribbean: United
States, Costa Rica, Honduras and Mexico
Asia: Japan, Australia, Iran and South Korea
Africa: Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Ghana
and Algeria
Europe: Netherlands, Italy, Belgium,
Switzerland, Germany, Russia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, England, Spain, Greece,
Portugal, Croatia and France.
29. Goal-line technology will be used at FIFA
World Cup 2014 matches for the first time in Brazil to avoid the referee’s
misjudgement on controversial kicks at goal-line.
30. The buzzing drone
of the instrument will be replaced in Brazil by the Caxirola, a Maracas-like
instrument that can be shaken to produce sound.
31. The total prize
money for the 2014 event will be $454 million USD but split has not yet been
confirmed.
32. With a flair for football, the hosting nation Brazil has won
the tournament five times.
Every Brazilian city has at least one soccer stadium.
33. And last but interesting fact is some coaches restrict their
players' sex lives during the month of play due to the belief that excessive
sex will impede their performance on the field. Players on Spain, Germany,
Chile's teams aren't allowed to have sex at all, while Brazil's players are
permitted to have "normal sex" as long as it's not "acrobatic," and France's are also allowed
to have sex as long as it doesn't last all night.

