RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Nervous Brazilian soccer fans took to Twitter to breathe a collective sigh of relief Saturday, with the final, tense-filled minute of a penalty shootout against Chile generating more buzz online than the Super Bowl.
Soccer fans of the Brazil national soccer team celebrate their team's victory during a live broadcast of the World Cup round of 16 soccer match between Brazil and Chile inside the FIFA Fan Fest area on Copacabana beach, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Saturday, June 28, 2014. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo)
Almost 389,000 tweets were generated in the minute after Chilean defender Gonzalo Jara's penalty shot hit the right post and allowed Brazil to avoid an early exit from the World Cup that it's hosting for the first time since 1950.
The ball hits the post during a penalty missed by Chile's Gonzalo Jara as Brazil's goalkeeper Julio Cesar dives during penalty shoot-out the World Cup round of 16 soccer match between Brazil and Chile at the Mineirao Stadium in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, Saturday, June 28, 2014. Brazil won 3-2 on penalties.(AP Photo/Frank Augstein)
By contrast, the peak during this year's Super Bowl between the Seattle Seahawks and Denver Broncos reached only 382,000, according to data compiled by the microblogging site.
Brazil fans celebrate after their team scored a goal during a penalty shootout after regulation time during the World Cup round of 16 soccer match between Brazil and Chile at the FIFA Fan Fest in Sao Paulo, Brazil, Saturday, June 28, 2014.(AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Overall, 16.4 million tweets were generated during the match, the most-tweeted yet during the World Cup.
—
