Brazil makes Olympic soccer finals for the first time in 24 years

GlobalPost

SÃO PAULO, Brazil — For the first time in 24 years, Brazil will be playing for Olympic soccer gold, going up against Mexico in Saturday's final match.

The tournament favorites beat South Korea 3-0 in Tuesday's semi-finals, bringing their team one step closer to taking home the elusive gold medal, reported the Associated Press. They will take on Mexico, who defeated Japan 3-1 in their semi-final.

More from GlobalPost: 2012 London Olympics in-depth coverage

"It's been a long time since we made it to this final and that shows how hard it is to get here," Brazil coach Mano Menezes said to the AP. "This group deserves a lot of credit and they know that we are closer to finally winning the gold."

According to CNN, Brazil has won the world champions five times and the South American championship eight times.

But Reuters reported that the soccer-obsessed country has yet to win gold at the Olympics after trying for the past 60 years. It came closest to the top spot in 1984 and 1988 when it won silver medals.

"The entire team had a huge effort to reach the final," Brazilian striker Leandro Damiao told the AP. "We are happy to have made it to the final and we are here to win the gold medal. We are Brazil, we are here for the gold."

Invest in independent global news

The World is an independent newsroom. We’re not funded by billionaires; instead, we rely on readers and listeners like you. As a listener, you’re a crucial part of our team and our global community. Your support is vital to running our nonprofit newsroom, and we can’t do this work without you. Will you support The World with a gift today? Donations made between now and Dec. 31 will be matched 1:1. Thanks for investing in our work!