One year ago, Congress defunded public media. Now that we're 100% community funded, please become a sustaining member or increase your existing membership today.
This archival content was originally written for and published on KPCC.org. Keep in mind that links and images may no longer work — and references may be outdated.
3 reasons you have to watch the Mexico-Brazil Olympic soccer final
Giovani dos Santos, who plays for lays for English Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur and the Mexican national team, will sit out Saturday's big game.
(
Wikipedia Commons
)
Listen
3:09
3 reasons you have to watch the Mexico-Brazil Olympic soccer final
KPCC's Susanne Whatley talks with Alejandro Navarro, sports anchor for local Telemundo station KVEA about why the Mexico-Brazil Olympic soccer final will be historic.
Check out KPCC’s "L.A. To London” series, exploring Southland connections to the 2012 Summer Olympics. View the series and follow it on Twitter at #latolondon.
UPDATE: (Spoilers below)
Mexico beat Brazil, to obtain their first Olympic soocer gold.
Saturday sees the big faceoff between Mexico and Brazil for Olympic gold in Men's Soccer, a game that is sure to be a big draw for fans of the two teams.
If you're not, why should you care? Alejandro Navarro, sports anchor for local Telemundo station KVEA, spoke with KPCC about the big game and gave us his big three reasons why you should:
1. HISTORY WILL BE MADE: No matter what team wins, this will mark an Olympic first: Mexico and Brazil’s soccer teams have never won Olympic gold medals.
Sponsored message
Olympic gold is the only trophy missing for five-time World Cup champion Brazil. “Brazil has tried a lot of times to win this medal,” said Navarro. It’s a bit ironic, Navarro adds, because “they are the best in soccer.”
This is also the first time Mexico has made it to an Olympic final.
2. ONE OF THE BEST TEAMS EVER: Mexico has proven itself a big winner, with coach Luis Fernando Tena leading his team to several victories.
“For the Pan-American Games, they beat Uruguay for the finals, and also the tournaments in France, which they have never won before,” Navarro said.
And they have a good shot at Olympic gold, even though key player
Giovani dos Santos is out of Saturday’s match because of a knee injury.
3. IT WILL BE BEAUTIFUL. AND INTENSE: Usually soccer teams will try to keep a 0-0 score to keep the suspense up. But that won’t be the case tomorrow. As soon as the referee blows that initial whistle, it’ll be an intense game, said Navarro. Both teams are in it to win it, and there won't be a dull moment.
“All the pressure is going to be on [Brazil,]” said Navarro. “It’s going to be a beautiful match against them because they have been in so many tournaments.”
Sponsored message
Convinced?
The match will air live at 7 a.m. PST on NBC Sports Network, Telemundo, NBC Olympic Soccer Channel and at nbcolympics.com.
One year ago, Congress voted to defund public media, eliminating a critical $1.7 million from our budget every year going forward. But they couldn’t silence us, and we’re not going anywhere. LAist is now 100% community funded and that means we’re taking our future into our own hands and turning to you to keep local reporting strong.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
