I'll admit it, this brought a tear to my eye. Man upstairs looked down at this fella on his own and said "football chairman irl"

It's kind of ironic how he wasn't there because he was the one superfan that would drive for 2 hours to get to the away match, but that he just happened to live in the city they were playing.

Dude was playing manager carreer mode in legendary with no funding on low divisions, my favorite type of save 👏🏼

Zealand is the best loan fan

Being from the UK its easy to forget how big some countries are

Missed opportunity at 4:20 to call yourself Brazealand

There is another interesting story in Brazil, a team called Primavera Atlético Clube. The team was founded by a Football Manager player in 2019 and already got in the 1st division of Mato-Grosso and beat Cuiabá (the biggest team of the state). Bruno Manfio - the president of the club - always posts in the brazilian Football Manager community on Facebook and we follow the club making history

Actual football manager.

dude, these documentary style videos are BY FAR your best works

The format isn't that complicated. Brazil is the size of the EU, each state had its own league before we had our national league. Some of them also have cups. The national competition is basically a Champions League of all state leagues but with 4 tiers.

I am from Santa Cruz do Sul, it's unbelievable how famous this story is by now. Santa Cruz is still a very small club, and right now, 2024 it's back to those bumpy roads, but we never lose hope, Santa Cruz will eventually win a world cup! We believe in it

something that's not mentioned in the video is that traditionally, club presidents in Brazil are not paid. So when he is talking about taking money from his pocket to put in the club... he is taking money from his pocket for real.

this is my hometown club and i got to meet the guy, the media coverage worldwide didn't feel as insane as appearing on a Zealand video lol. Also good job with the pronunciations, close enough 😉

First of all... as a Brazilian... your pronunciation of names was top notch... one of the best i've ever seen... secondly... this is a story that deserves to be told and you did it like a master... well done mate

The thing I love the most about Brazilian football is that you've got to see small teams playing against some huge ones. Santa Cruz, for instance, having only 4 full time employees plays against Gremio and Internacional (both have won the world Championship and American Championship).

I essentially cried as a kid watching this. This is what football IS ALL about.

I'm a Grêmio fan and watched that game in 2012 on TV. Thank you Zealand for telling the world this fantastic story!

I'm not even a football fan, but always admired the unmatched passion of football fans/players, who's fandom is carried IN THEIR BLOOD. This brought me to tears, what an amazing story.

At this moment with four matches played in the Gauchão 2024, Santa Cruz is... Dead last. They won their local derby against Avenida, drew once and their two losses were from a single goal down, so it may be a case of making the most out of their matches except Grêmio and Internacional and they will be safe. If it serves as a bit of hope, Internacional got beaten 2-1 by Guarany at Bagé, the team that came up with Santa Cruz last year.

Still a legend to this day.

Dear Zealand , please do more videos like this. With the european clubs taking all the media space, we dont get to hear such unique stories. Thanks again for making this video.

I'm from the state of Santa Cruz, Rio Grande do Sul. Some people are against state leagues due to scheduling issues, but I think it's a cool and traditional characteristic of our football. In 2017, the team from my hometown (E.C. Novo Hamburgo) won the state league, and it was an incredible moment. Many regional clubs wouldn't exist, and thousands of professionals would be unemployed if the state leagues were to end.

I’m born in that same state and a Grêmio supporter but didn’t about this at all! Great video, Z! And you did good enough with the names. 😄

Honestly my first thought when I saw that title of this video was "oh my god what a dumb clickbait". But then I was like "waait, maybe he really saved the club? Lets check it out just to see what type of clickbait is that." Turned out it was not a clickbait at all. He literally saved the club. This is just crazy.

Beautiful story man.. This man deserves his own movie!

Me, a random woman in Tennessee, i enjoy hearing about this and im wanting to cheer on this team .i absolutely love the passion and underdog story. O hope they start doing great

This story would make a good common man movie😂 especially a scene about thiago running back and forth for hotdogs

MEU GRÊMIO APARECEU NO ZEALAND.

Stories like this will be why I will always love the beautiful game, no other sport can a story like this happen

For Years and Years I was a fan of a horrible american college 🏈 team. I ended up serving a tour in Afghanistan as a US soldier in 2009/10 and go figure this back up QB transferring from some other school shows up and takes my team all the way to a championship. I watched it alone half way across the world at 4AM and I have been chasing that ever since.The feeling of watching people you care about find success while you yourself are struggling deeply can be a profound experience. Great Video War Eagle!

This is a wonderful story! Greetings from Germany to my Brazilian Brothers❤

Is nice to remember that here in Rio Grande do Sul we have an Supercup tournament called Recopa Gaucha, this tournament is played between the Campeonato Gaucho winner and the Copa FGF winner. In 2021 the Recopa Gaucha was played between Gremio vs Santa Cruz, making the history more interesting. Sorry for my english btw

As a Brazilian, thank you! I had never heard about this team nor their history, I bet most Brazilians haven't heard of it. Awesome

Great story, class storytelling, editing and presenting again Z

I love to see this type of content! Especially in Brazil! I would recommend also you to take a look at Paulista from Jundiaí-SP. Jundiaí is a great brazilian city (second best city to live in Brazil according to some research), and its team, Paulista, won the 2005 Copa do Brasil (national cup), won 2-1 against River Plate on 2006 Libertadores, but now sits on 5th tier of the state championship, something like 9th tier of Brazilian football

as a Brazilian I just wanted to correct a few things: 1. The Copa FGF is a state cup which teams with "no calenday" play in (teams not in the 1st to 4th national divisions), so big clubs like Gremio and Internacional do not play. Another one is the Copa Paulista in Sao Paulo 2. I'm pretty sure that the winner of the FGF Cup gets to choose if they want top be in the 4th division or the Copa do Brasil, idk but ik thats how it is with the Copa Paulista. And why did he choose the Copa and not the 4th division? Money! It pays more money, Thus with the money from the Copa do Brasil they were able to invest in getting promoted!

💁‍♂️ Huge soccer fan. Love Brazil team. Thank you for this. ♥️⚽👍🏆

I absolutely love these football stories you tell, one of the best things not just on your channel, but on all of KZfaq

love that for him, seems like a nice, chill dude who just loves his team

Great story well told. Also really glad you linked the video Alfie from 7s did on this two years back. Classy touch.

These are the vids i love the most on your platform. I watch almost all of your content on here but these real life stories are amazing. From the Faroe Islands to this one and more. Keep this style of content coming. It's fantastic. Well done Sir.

Hi! I'm Brazilian, and I would just like to congratulate you for the amazing job you did breaking down the league in my country. Also, great pronunciation all around! Haha Never seen your videos before, this was the first of many from now on! Thank you for spreading that amazing story! Wish you all the best for your channel!

Love it! Thank you for sharing!

I love this kind of content, great work!

You're a good storyteller. I don't even care about football yet this had me on the edge on my seat.

Next save: Start with Santa Cruz, and win the Libertadores.

Amazing job on the video. Trully a joy to see storys like that.

Oh boy...you trigger some good memories of mine. This is my hometown soccer Club and I have to thank you for doing this videos with such a good quality. Thanks lad.

You're an incredible storyteller man - keep these coming!

I do appreciate the seamless ad plug And it's something that's about the topic

Beautiful story! TY!

Awesome video, dude. Thank you! ❤

Excellent video! Thanks for all your hard work.

Salute and respect to that man the dedication of being fan

Amazing video Zealand! This is the type of stuff that is fan in the uk of lower league teams dream Of! Keep this great content coming!

wow, I´m Brazilian and I didn´t know about this drama. I remember the lone fan shot, but that was it. How nice to know about this.

Really great video, telling the rich story about our small clubs 🇧🇷

seeing these famous stories from my state told by someone from outside my country is an incredible feeling

This is the kind of story that we should hear. Its a story of faithfulness, dedication, and perseverance. He was not only devoted to the team but is devoted to Santa Cruz. Giving everything he has not once but twice! Not everyone is granted success but those who never give up will find theirs eventually.

Muito legal esta nossa história chegar ao exterior. 👏👏👏

What a great story and terrific storytelling!

What an awesome story, thanks for telling it!

What a fun story. Almost brought a tear to my eye seeing tiagos dedication

This needs to be made into a movie. Absolutely inspiring.💯

I’m brazilian and got to know this story through your video! Thank you!

I flippin love these videos!

I has learned this story from HITC Sevens' video 3 years ago. This video is a reminder of an amazing story and their further successes years after. Thank you!

What a history! Even made me a bit emotional, believe me if you don't 😅 I am brazilian but never had a encounter with this storie. Thank you Zealand for this video, it's quite motivational in a way. Please keep making these kind of videos. They are too good. The one in the island is very enjoyable as well 😊

What a legend! Man i need to meet this dude.

This would actually make an incredible Disney movie. Would love to see it. Rags to Riches, feel-good, amazing.

Thiago is True Curva-Sud example... 😢😢😢 Bless you all "Hardcore loyal fans"...

This story is awesome. THIS is why we love football

Someone should make a movie on this guy. He truly deserves it.

Amazing storytelling and video! As a brazillian I just wanna say that your pronunciation was great, and thanks for the video. Keep up!

Might be your best video yet, great story

I knew this story, some things are destined to happen, simple as that, cheers from Brazil.

Z you’re so friggin good when you go down this route. I love you, I love this sport, I love good humans

Z, thank you for highlighting this story and just the overall magic of Brazilian football (plus how complicated the pyramid and state tournaments can be). Also, as it's been pointed out by quite a few folks...BraZealand was right there!

I'm amazed. I live in Porto Alegre and I cheer for Grêmio since I was a kid (although I don't follow it that much nowadays) and I've never heard about this story. Thank you for sharing. I'm now considering Santa Cruz as the second team I cheer for.

I am brazilian. And a Gremio fan, and was watching that game. For you to know, being in the Copa do Brasil for this small clubs is a huge thing, because the clubs that qualify for the first stage of the Cup receive 950k to 1,5 milion reais, just for qualifying for the CUP. And as you can imagine, the small team that dont have a big revenue during the year, this money is a major deal.

This is such a epic underdog story, I wish they made a movie about it.

Congrats Z for the one million views! Keep up the great content

As a Brazilian (and someone who lives in this state) watchig this I must say the explanation of the leagues and geography was spot on. Good job!

great vid! and appreciate the references. very responsible.

As a Brazilian, from Rio de Janeiro, gotta praise your work. I didn't know his history, i just knew he brought a small team from the outskirts of Rio Grande do Sul back to the top state division. Nice work man. This is the 3rd well structured video i've seen in this channel, which means, i must sub. Cheers!

Congrats on the video Bro, ur brazillian accent is great, keep it up! Cheers from Brazil!

Love you Z❤

Omg, what a story. It certainly deserves a book or a film of its own. Would be a masterpiece

This was a heartwarming story.

Love these type of videos

Proud of my state in brazil!!

I love this man. He epitomizes the depth of sacrifice a fan is willing to make for his club. I would miss a match to go get hot dogs, but only if my club would for sure win that match, guaranteed to win that match, otherwise no trade.

Yes, you have to visit and make a video Zealand!

I'm not crying. You are.

Greetings from Brazil.

Great content. Let’s go 🇧🇷 ❤️

Shedding some light on our league system: as Z said our leagues are a nationwide 4-tier pyramid (Brasileirão Série A to D) run by our national football federation, CBF, going from April/May to December. CBF also organizes our national cup, Copa do Brasil. We also have state championships (Estaduais), run by each state's football federation, with each Estadual being able to have its own format, from a simple league to the most convoluted bullshit ever seen (Rio de Janeiro's Estadual). These are held in the beginning of the calendar year (January through April). Clubs in Séries A, B and C (i.e. the top clubs) have guaranteed spots in those, as are relegated clubs from Série C. The non-league clubs fight for berths in Série D via the Estaduais, based on performance in those. Basically, if you're a minnow, you start in your state's pyramid. Overperform and you go to the national pyramid, while still playing in Estadual in the beginning of the year. Getting promoted to Série C, guarantees your spot regardless of your performance in the Estadual. CBF has added a bullshit stipulation for qualification to the Copa do Brasil last year, where even if you're a top club, you might not qualify for the cup if you underperform. From this point onwards is just a history lesson and my opinion about the Estaduais. In the olden days, due to transport limitations in a continental-sized country, holding a national league was not viable (for comparison, the UK's land area is slightly smaller than the state of São Paulo). So, we had state championships (Estaduais) and regional tournaments, the latter usually involving the state champions. The evolution of means of transportation, mainly aircrafts, allowed the birth of Brasileirão in 1971. From 2003 onwards, we adopted the current league system, which has gradually been rendering the Estaduais pointless and turning them into a glorified pre-season tournament for the top clubs, being just an excuse to hold more state/city derbies per year and simplistic bragging rights for the supporters. Considering that the league lasts 8 months (2 less than the usual in Europe) clubs have to deal with a massively bloated calendar because of the Estaduais, with teams starting to use youth squads in those to reduce player fatigue during the rest of the year. I honestly think we must revamp our league pyramid and abolish the Estaduais, having regional tiers below Série D so smaller clubs can get playing time and some source of income year round instead of a simple revenue from the state championship for 3 months.

Best football / soccer story, ever! 🎉

Always so good 👍

What a beautiful story... someone will make his story into a movie.