“Moleque da Seleção” (1 of 2)

After Richarlison scored a hat trick in under a half hour in the Olympics opener for the Brazilian national men’s team, he was given the chance to ask for a song on the hit Sunday evening show “O Fantástico.” His request: the official song of the men’s Olympic team, “Moleque da Seleção.” “Moleque” means “kid” but it also has a sense of a punk, a scamp, an urchin, a kid with a rough edge and street smarts. The “Seleção” (literally “Selection”) is the name for the Brazilian national soccer teams (men and women).

Listen to the song and watch the video.

“National Team Kid”
by Gabi Fernandes and Xande de Pilares
[spoken] The guys who made history, this is why this shirt is so heavy, why it has five stars. We are always with you and the feeling is one of total trust in you. Total! Trust in your ability, your quality. Nobody got here by chance. But focus on this. We need this game. It’s important to us. Not to prove anything to others, it’s to prove something to us. You want to prove it.

[sung] What they call luck is running down your face
Every “no” and every fall you took only made you stronger
When you look at the yellow shirt you’re wearing
Don’t forget the dream you had when you were a kid
It wasn’t just for the money, and not for the house and the big car
When you were a kid you dreamed about playing for the national team
There it is, you earned your place, you never lost hope
And today you’re living the dream of so many children

Play ball!

(continued tomorrow)