FIFA WC trophy on a Samba tour
FIFA WC trophy on a Samba tour
Assistant coach Mario Zagallo said that 180 million Brazilians will be supporting the team when it starts its World Cup campaign.

New Delhi: Brazilian soccer legend Mario Zagallo, who won the Cup as a player in '58 and '62 and as a coach in '70, thinks Brazil will have to play better to have a chance of winning another World Cup.

"To conquer a sixth World Cup we have to play better than we are playing because each team we will face represents the world versus Brazil," Zagallo, who is the current assistant coach, said.

Speaking on the occassion of the display of FIFA World Cup trophy, Zagallo also said that 180 million Brazilians will be supporting the team when it starts its World Cup campaign in Germany.

He was one of five players representing all Brazillian victories as the trophy went on display in Rio de Janeiro.

The trophy will be on display in 28 countries, before it reaches Germany for this summer's tournament.

Joined by Nilton dos Santos, Alberto, Babeto and Marcos, he assessed the various stumbling blocks and stepping stones facing Brazil as they bid for a sixth trophy in Germany.

Meanwhile Brazil has called on the army to prevent any possible theft of the World Cup trophy during its visit to the country.

Jules Rimet Cup, which was used till the 1970 edition of the soccer world cup, was stolen in 1983 from the building of the Brazilian Soccer Confederation.

The Cup was awarded permanently to Brazil in 1970 for being the first team to have won the championship three times following its victory in the 1958, 62 and 70 editions of the World Cup.

The police discovered later that the Cup had been melted down and sold for its gold.

The trophy will be kept in a vault when not on show in Brazil and travel between displays on a helicopter.

The current FIFA trophy will be used until the 2038 World Cup. Weighing nearly 5 kilograms , it cost $20,000 when it was created in 1971. In 1997, a copy of the Jules Rimet Cup was auctioned for $467,500.

Brazil is the current leader in FIFA's world rankings and is the favorite to win a record sixth World Cup title.

They also won the 2004 Copa America and the Confederations Cup, and finished first in the South American World Cup qualifying race last year.

The World Cup in Germany begins on June 9, but Brazil will open its Group F campaign on June 13 in Berlin against Croatia. Then it plays Australia on June 18 in Munich and Japan on June 22 in Dortmund.

Brazilian World Cup winners from the past and present who welcomed the trophy on Thursday in Rio de Janeiro, included 2002 goalkeeper Marcos, 1994 striker Bebeto, 1970 defender Carlos Alberto Torres, 1958 and '62 defender Nilton Santos, and Mario Zagallo.

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