RIO DE JANEIRO — Whatever else happens at these Olympics or, indeed, happened before Saturday night, Rio 2016 will always been remembered with joy and fondness here. That’s how much Brazil loves soccer. And that’s how big a gift its Olympic men’s team gave to the nation.
Thanks to a first-half goal for captain and superstar Neymar, then an exhilarating penalty shootout after Germany’s Max Meyer equalized in the second half, Brazil won the Games' gold medal for the first time in its history.
Fittingly, it was Neymar who finished the job to send the Maracana Stadium into delirium.