Rio’s Christ and Buenos Aires’s Obelisk swap colors for sportsmanship

The two most well-known monuments in Brazil and Argentina – Christ the Redeemer, in Rio de Janeiro, and the Obelisk of Buenos Aires – were each lit with the colors of the other country’s flag at 8 pm on Tuesday (Jun 10). The Brazilian statue reflected a blue and white light, whereas the Argentinean monument displayed green and yellow, for two hours simultaneously.

Rio’s State Secretary of Tourism Claudio Magnavita, explained that the initiative aimed to promote sportsmanship and tolerance between the nations.

“Both countries, adversaries in football, are serving as an example of civility and brotherhood a few days ahead of the World Cup. The competition will stick to the football field. The idea is to promote a the spirit of peace during the tournament,” he said. “We want today to become the Fair Play Day, a day for celebration shared among peoples, a day on which the sporting spirit is lifted high above any competition,” the secretary declared.

Marketing Secretary Jaime Ríos, from Argentina’s Ministry of Tourism, said the action was a symbolic one, and was meant as a reference to the major role played by the two countries in the football world, and also the historic rivalry between Argentina and Brazil when it comes to sports. “So, we saw that it was the right moment to show the world that the two main football teams are brothers, and preach civility, not rivalry,” Ríos stated.

Argentina has bought the third largest number of tickets for the World Cup, behind only Brazil and the United States.

Translated by Fabrício Ferreira / Translation updated by Mayra Borges