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Posted: Tuesday, July  2, 2002

Brazilians turn to Jesus for World Cup success

Divine inspiration?

From Pele's wife to Brazil's World Cup stars, the secret to the country's soccer success is out - divine intervention.

Brazil's record-making fifth World Cup triumph against Germany in Yokohama on Sunday was followed by the whole Brazilian delegation saying a collective prayer on the pitch before going on to hoist the trophy.

Amid the joyous scenes several of Brazil's players took off their tops to reveal T-shirts with colourful tributes to Christ and Jesus.

In another touching moment, two-time champion Cafu was thrust onto a pillar to raise the World Cup while his team-mates scribbled a religious message on the front of his top.

And in Rio on Monday reports said Brazil's players are just a few of the country's sports figures who are part of an ever-growing Evangelical movement which can boast Assiria Nascimento, the wife of Brazil legend Pele, as one of the stars of popular Gospel music.

The "Assembly of God" Church boasts 4.5 million followers while the "Universal Church of the Kingdom of God" has two million.

And they are just two of the movements currently gaining ground on the traditional Catholic Church.

Although it is hard to say how many of Brazil's World Cup team are members, weekly paper Veja reported that the 'Association of the Athletes of Christ' - founded by ex-racing car driver Alex Dias Ribeiro - now has 10,000 followers, including half of the top flight Sao Caetano football team.

"The climate in the world of sport has become less hostile since the creation of the Association of the Athletes of Christ," affirmed Ribiero.

Former Brazil coach Carlos Alberto Parreira confirmed the trend.

"Generally the players (who are members) have a much healthier way of behaving and a more positive attitude than the others," he told Veja.

Evangelists, whose yearly income of 200 million dollars comes mainly from the sale of music and books, attract people from a wide social spectrum.

Many politicians have been courting their attention in advance of September's elections.

Gospel music is a big hit in Brazil, with an average of five new CDs hitting the shelves every month.