Brazil's football team is doing so poorly at the Olympics that people are looking to the heavens for salvation. Helio Sillman, a follower of the Afro-Brazilian rites, staged a Macumba ritual to help the home team and its star player and team captain, Neymar. 10 -Sillman explains how to summon the higher powers: on a large wooden plate he places 11 dolls side by side, each one representing a member of Brazil's team. And the deities must act quickly because Brazil's mighty men's team could crash out of the tournament on Wednesday if they do not beat Denmark. Gods -- from Afro-Brazilian rites known as Candomble, Umbanda and Macumba -- are being invoked.

Source: Standard Digital August 10, 2016 15:33 UTC