Where history and hysteria rhyme

Greetings from Hio — and no, you haven’t read that wrong.

That’s how the natives — the cariocas — pronounce the name of their beloved city, the transformation of the letter ‘r’ into ‘h’ presumably meaning that, down the years, they must also have paid homage to such revered national heroes as Honaldo and Hivaldo, not to mention Hoberto Carlos.

Last night, the focus might have been on Sao Paolo, where Brazil and Croatia were opening the 2014 World Cup, but in the run-up to the big kick-off, as this vast nation held its breath, Rio was certainly not of a mind to play second fiddle. Virtually the entire city seemed to have been turned into a fan zone — but by its own citizens, not Fifa — apartment blocks and even whole streets festooned in yellow, blue and green while everyone from toddlers to grannies paraded the most iconic strip in football.