This has got to be the funniest moment to come out of the FIFA World Cup 2018 in Russia. It inspired advertisements, apps, memes and even training routines. It also helped Neymar – the man long seen as the Brazilian national football team’s finest player – cement his place as its funniest “playmaker” at the tournament.
The footballer’s habit of overreacting to fouls by hurling himself on the ground and rolling over and over again has been generating jokes for a while, but he took it to another level at the World Cup. Of course, “Rolling Neymar” memes had to follow.
A Rio de Janeiro bar even invented a new drinking game around the star athlete’s theatrics. During Brazil’s group game against Serbia, the bar offered free shots every time Neymar fell.
The World Cup is long over but the memory of ‘Rolling Neymar’ remains a source of joy to many. Here are some fine examples: