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| Clovis Acosta Fernandes |
Clovis Acosta Fernandes,
a legendary Brazil fan whose tears inspired an iconic image after the Selecao
lost 7-1 to Germany in the World Cup last year, has died in Porto Alegre,
following a nine-year battle with kidney cancer. Fernandes sold his
pizzeria business prior to the Italy World Cup in 1990 to fund his travels
round the world, which took him to over 150 matches in more than 60 countries.
“I
remember watching Brazil win the World Cup in 1970 as a boy, and how much I
wanted to be a part of this, but it was not until twenty years later that I got
to experience it firsthand. All this passion I had been bottling up was
released at once, and the feeling has not stopped since,” he told a FIFA
documentary crew last year.
Fernandes’
amiable demeanor and luxuriant moustache made him a national media phenomenon,
as cameramen homed in on him during matches, and travel agencies and local governments
paid to take him around the world, while he personally witnessed the team lift
the greatest prize in international football in 1994 and 2002.
RT report continues:
But
Fernandes international fame arrived when he was filmed sobbing while clutching
a replica World Cup Trophy, as Brazil slumped to a humiliating home defeat in
Belo Horizonte on July 8 last year, against eventual winners Germany. After the
match, Fernandes was pictured handing the replica trophy to a young German fan,
earning him extra sympathy online.
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Brazilian
fans react to their team's loss at the end of their 2014 World Cup semi-finals
against Germany at the Mineirao stadium in Belo Horizonte July 8, 2014 © Damir
Sagolj / Reuters
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What
hadn’t been widely revealed at the time, is that he had been battling cancer on
and off for nearly a decade. In recent years, Fernandes was forced to stop
drinking alcohol and relocated to an organic farm in a bid to prolong his life.
Fernandes’ last tournament
had been the Copa America this summer, where his beloved team once again exited
early, losing to underdogs Paraguay in the quarter-finals. Brazilian media
reported that he recently abandoned his final course of chemotherapy, and requested
to go home, where he died surrounded by his children and grandchildren.
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