Brazil has won five World Cups — the most of any team, and playing in front of the their home crowd, this year seems like an ideal opportunity to win a sixth.
This ambition for a sixth title is encompassed perfectly in one family of unique Brazilian fans.
The Da Silva family, who live near the Brazilian national capital Brasilia, boast 14 family members with six digits on each hand and six fingers on each foot.
Rabidly pulling for their home country, the Da Silvas’ really do feel that their energy can make a difference.
“We are giving so much energy for Brazil to win the Cup, and I believe this energy will flow on to the pitch and they will play really well and win their sixth World Cup,” 28-year-old Ana Carolina Santos da Silva told Reuters.
The condition itself is called Polydacty, a dominant, but rare genetic condition.
Notably, this sixth digit does not function any differently from the other five ‘normal’ fingers.
Members of the Da Silva family are still able to perform activities such as cooking and guitar strumming without any difficulty, and in some ways, the extra digit can even give an advantage.
Fifteen-year-old Joao de Assis da Silva, who aspires to be a goalkeeper, told Reuters, “Everyone in Brazil loves football and wants to be a footballer as well when they grow up. Having six fingers has helped me a lot playing football. I can hold the ball more easily, my hands are bigger than other people’s so it’s easier to reach up to get balls that go over my head.”
