France was eliminated in quarter-finals of the 2014 World Cup last week, right around the time news of a 7-year-old Brazilian boy with a unique World Cup-inspired name made headlines.
Despite the fact that France beat Brazil in the 2006 World Cup, Petrucio Dos Santos of Brazil decided to name his son, born in October of that year, Zinedine Yazid Zidane Thierry Hanry Bapthez Eric Felipe Silva Santos. (Silva Santos is the family name.)
[T]he boy’s father said he decided to pay tribute to three of the team’s stars: Barthez, Zidane, and Henry. The name Eric is a tribute to French forward and Manchester United legend Eric Cantona while Felipe pays homage to Brazil’s manager Luiz Felipe Scolari.
Why pay tribute to the French team? Petrucio said he became fond of France after visiting the country and being “captivated by the kindness” of the people there.
Young Zinedine doesn’t care for his long name, though. So far he’s only managed to memorize a portion of it. He wishes he’d been named after Brazilian midfielder Luiz Gustavo instead, he said.
(Other World Cup-inspired baby names I’ve blogged about: Fifa, Rahn, Soccer City & more.)
Sources: Il appelle son fils “Zinedine Yazid Zidane Thierry Hanry Barthez Eric Felipe”, #WorldCup: He’s Got The Whole Team In His Name