Two years ago, the unity between fans and team became literal in a spectacular and unforgettable celebration on the Barra Arena court. After a loss in the first game and another 40 minutes of tension in the second, FlaBasquete reached the top of the world with an unquestionable victory over European champion Maccabi Tel Aviv. Before that Sunday, September 28, 2014, the Pride of the Nation had won almost everything: the Carioca Championship, the NBB Championship, and the League of the Americas. And the Intercontinental Cup came to Gávea to crown a perfect season, rewarding a team with fantastic athletes and a top-notch coaching staff.

Defeat with a taste of "yes, we can"
The World Cup ticket had been sealed six months earlier with the Liga das Américas title. Flamengo was the undefeated champion of its continent, defeating Pinheiros in the final at a packed Maracanãzinho Stadium. The mighty Maccabi came to Brazil with a victory over Real Madrid. In the first match, the Israeli team, which could be considered the favorite, won. But the narrow margin of just three points on the scoreboard at Arena da Barra (69-66) showed that the Pride of the Nation was fully capable of overturning the score and taking the trophy.

Hope alive and dream come true
Hope was brighter than ever in the second match against Maccabi. The Europeans even took a 7-0 lead, but with two consecutive three-pointers from Marquinhos and two more two-pointers from Meyinsse, Flamengo quickly turned the score around to 11-7. The team maintained its lead and closed the first quarter at 27-25. In the second, the gap widened for their opponent (46-36) and narrowed for the trophy.

Maccabi staged a comeback after halftime, winning the third quarter 25-18, but in the final quarter, the team and fans demonstrated their strength and synergy. They were unstoppable: 90-77 on the scoreboard, and the trophy was secured for the home team.

Exciting celebration in the arms of the Nation
More beautiful than the skill, determination, and technical quality of the red-and-black players in the match was only the title celebration. Ecstatic, the fans who filled the stands formed a sea of ​​people on the court—a sea that soon became a throne for the players, like Olivinha and Herrmann. The Argentine even starred in one of the unforgettable scenes of the victory: the center climbed to the rim—with the ease afforded by his 2,06'XNUMX" height—and cut the basket to keep as a souvenir.

At the awards ceremony, idol and captain Marcelinho Machado lifted the coveted trophy, shortly before the Maccabi players and staff left, stunned by the magnificent red-and-black fans, declaring to the microphones of the journalists present that they had never seen anything like it in their lives. Flamengo basketball was bigger than ever, and the Red-and-Black Nation was as immense and fantastic as ever.

Reread the news from the time:

FlaBasquete: The journey to the World Cup
Marquinhos: "We are nothing without our fans"
Marcelinho: "World Cup with Flamengo's shirt is special"
Flamengo vs Maccabi: first game of the World Cup
Neto: "Victory doesn't leave our heads"
In the arms of the Nation, Flamengo is world champion
Flamengo's Olympic Sports Director: "It's fantastic"
Neto: "We have to think about how we got here"
Marcelinho: "The fans always pushed us"
Olivinha and Herrmann celebrate the Red-Black Nation
Flamengo fan pays tribute to world champion basketball player