(foto: Twitter)
Flamengo’s Copa Libertadores parade in Rio drew half a million fans in wild celebration — but ended in chaos as police fired tear gas and rubber bullets to control the crowd.
Rio de Janeiro was a city in red and black as nearly 500,000 Flamengo fans flooded the streets to celebrate their team’s Copa Libertadores triumph — but the festivities ended in violent chaos.
The heroes returned from Lima, where Flamengo claimed their fourth Libertadores title with a 1-0 victory over arch-rivals Palmeiras. The team paraded through the heart of Rio in an open-top bus, proudly displaying the trophy to a sea of ecstatic supporters.
The route stretched just 850 meters — from Primeiro de Março Street to the intersection of Antonio Carlos Avenue and Araujo Porto Alegre Street — yet it was completely packed with fans waving flags, lighting flares, and singing for hours. For much of the day, Rio turned into the world’s biggest football stage, celebrating South America’s most passionate club culture.
However, the celebrations descended into chaos by nightfall. According to Lance!, police used rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse the crowd after scuffles broke out, leaving several people injured. Firefighters were seen carrying at least two fans away on stretchers as the once-jubilant atmosphere turned tense.
Flamengo, Brazil’s most popular club, boasts an estimated 40 million supporters nationwide — and their passion was on full display throughout the day. Despite the violence that marred the event, the celebration underlined just how deeply football runs through Brazilian life.
For Flamengo, the victory parade capped off a historic season under Filipe Luís, who guided the team to their fourth Libertadores crown and is now on course to win the Brazilian Serie A title as well. For Rio, however, the day was a reminder of both the beauty and volatility of South American football passion.