One of soccer’s most iconic celebrations showed up at the Maracanã on Sunday, courtesy of an NFL kicker.
Baltimore Ravens kicker Tyler Loop made a 56-yard field goal as time expired Sunday to beat the Dallas Cowboys 34-31, then celebrated with Cristiano Ronaldo’s “Siu” as the crowd at Maracanã Stadium repeated it back to him.
The “Siu” is Ronaldo’s trademark goal celebration, in which he jumps, spins in the air and lands with his feet wide and his arms at his sides while shouting “Siuuu,” a stretched-out version of the Spanish word for “yes.”
Loop said teammate Ryan Eckley had suggested a soccer-style knee slide after a big kick. He went with the “Siu” instead. With about three minutes left, Loop said, teammate Nick Moore told him, “We’re gonna do something epic to win this game.”
“Our number was called, and Nick (Moore) and Ryan and the guys up front, they all did their job, so I can do mine,” Loop said. “I’m so proud of this team.”
Cowboys kicker Brandon Aubrey made a 23-yard field goal to tie the game at 31 with seven seconds left. Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson then completed a 27-yard pass to Zay Flowers and called a timeout with one second remaining, which set up Loop’s kick.
The game was the NFL’s third in Brazil and its first in Rio de Janeiro, and the announced crowd was 72,792. It was the first American football game played at Maracanã.
The kick came after a miss in last season’s finale. Loop missed a 44-yard field goal that would have sent the Ravens to the playoffs, and Baltimore lost 26-24 to the Pittsburgh Steelers. He said the team responded to difficulty this season.
“One thing we talked about was being on one accord,” Loop said. “There was adversity, and then we went and responded, and we delivered, and it was awesome.”
He said the bond with teammates is what he values most about the sport.
“That’s the most special thing about this sport, the fellowship and the togetherness that you can build with those guys,” Loop said. “It’s a blast to see all this come through a lot of adversity between last season and now.”
