No nation on the planet has an identity and global image so tied to its national soccer team as Brazil. Entire universes of content are dedicated to the Seleção, its style, and its stars. It's rarified air.

据《外交政策》杂志网站报道，世界上没有哪个国家的认同感和全球形象如巴西那样，与国家的足球队联系得如此紧密。所有谈论都聚焦在巴西国家足球队，它的风格和球星身上。

Against this backdrop, failure as hosts (as opposed to just on the pitch) could be disastrous, and not only for Brazil's self image. It would linger for decades, warding off would-be tourists, foreign investors and partners. It would compound the trauma, seared into the national memory, of its meltdown in the 1950 final on home turf. And let's face it, almost everyone within reach of television pays attention to the World Cup. With3.2 billion viewers and 770 billion minutes of attention -- hey, no pressure.

在这样的背景下，作为东道主，失败可能会是灾难性的，这不仅仅是对巴西的自身形象而言。失利带来的阴影将经年不散，预期的游客、海外投资者和合作伙伴则将随之而去。它会使深深镌刻在国家记忆中的毒瘤——1950年世界杯决赛的主场失利——进一步恶化。但是面对现实吧，几乎每一个能收看电视的人都在关注世界杯。有32亿观众和7700亿分钟的关注度，巴西表示毫无压力。

The pressure for success of the World Cup is still more intense for Brand Brazil because Brazil has become the default team of the global south, punching well above its marketing weight and projecting out well beyond the reach of the nation's diplomatic, economic, or historical footprint. Its canary camisa can be spotted in the most unlikely parts of the world, even where football leagues -- or indeed any organized sports -- are scarcely established. With many American icons discarded in recent years, the trappings of Brazilian football have become a coda for global belonging, post-racialism, unrepressed sexuality and success. The world is proud of Brazil and wants a piece of it, as shown by the countless billions spent by sponsors, advertisers, broadcasters and merchandisers around the world.

对于“巴西”品牌而言，要在世界杯上取得成功的压力似乎更大，因为巴西已经默认成为重要的南半球力量，能够在市场上与竞争对手一决高下，并将影响力投射到该国外交、经济或历史无法企及的地方。它的黄色队服在世界最不可能的地方都能看到，那里甚至还几乎没有设立像样的足球联赛——或任何组织有序的体育比赛。近年来，巴西足球已然成为全球归属感、后种族主义、未受压制的性以及成功反抗殖民主义的代名词。世界以巴西足球为荣，并且都想从中分一杯羹，世界各地的赞助商、广告商、广播公司和商人为此支付了难以数计的资金便可资佐证。

Brazil's prize for getting its mojo back is considerable, not just as a fillip to kick-start its economic recovery, but also as a chance for a long-term stimulant to foreign investment, flows of people, and global markets' acceptance of Brazilian products and ideas. A successful World Cup, despite the protests, would affirm Brazil's already attractive attributes (the sex, samba and soccer part) and confirm other emergent stories of inclusiveness, diversity, democracy, resilience, and sustainability.

对好运重归巴西的奖赏是可观的，它不仅是推动其经济强劲复苏的一剂强心剂，还为海外投资、人流涌入和全球市场对巴西产品和理念的认同提供了一个长期刺激的机会。一届成功的世界杯，尽管期间会有抗议，将对巴西已经声名在外的魅力特质（性感、桑巴和足球）加以证实，也将证明其他涌现出来的包容性、多样性、民主、顺应性和可持续性。

But at home in Brazil, it's an understandably complex proposition. There's the perception of corruption in the global game, the vertiginous and alienating sums of money involved, and the questionable wisdom and efficacy of the $11.3 billion spent on stadiums, infrastructure, and other costs -- all while the middle class simmers from disappointment of unfulfilled expectations. A Pew poll where 61 percent opposed hosting the tournament could easily have been a proxy for the 71 percent cheesed off with Dilma Rousseff's presidency and government in general. But four years after posting 7.5 percent growth and now flirting with recession, you can't blame Brazilians for not being in any mood to dress up for guests.

但在巴西国内，这是一个理解起来有些复杂的命题。本届国际赛事中存在腐败，需要投入大量金钱，在场馆、基础建设上所花的钱和其他花费方面表现出来的智慧和效率也遭到了质疑——这一切都是因为未达到中产阶级的期望而产生的失望所致。此前皮尤公司开展的一项调查表明，61%反对举办世界杯的人中，有71%的人对罗塞夫出任总统和罗塞夫政府基本持否定态度。在宣告实现了7.5%的增长四年之后，如今巴西经济面临衰退，你无法谴责巴西人没有心情为宾客盛装打扮。

And people around the world will give them a good, long look even without their Carnaval makeup. They expect a show selling the allure of sex, samba, and world-beating futebol, but they are also prepared to look at the diverse and contested texture of the country beyond these mid-20th-century tropes. For those outside looking at Brand Brazil in recent years, the complex struggles towards upward mobility in the favelas and controversy around pacificação are only somewhat offset by newly recognizable claims of sustainability and inclusiveness in Brazilian products as diverse as Itaú banking, Natura cosmetics, and Embraer airplanes. Meanwhile, global investors are looking for a signal of competence. They don't expect Zurich or Hong Kong levels of efficiency, but they do look for signs of mature, consistent, and authentic responses to challenges.

不过，即使巴西人没带上狂欢节的妆容，全球各地的人们也将好好地打量他们。他们期待一场出售性感、桑巴舞以及世界一流足球盛宴的表演，但他们还做好了准备，要看看这些20世纪中期的隐喻如何体现这个国家多样化且带有争议的本质。对于近些年那些旁观巴西的人来说，针对贫民窟向更高层社会的流动的复杂斗争以及围绕“净化贫民窟运动”（pacificação ）的争议在一定程度上被体现在巴西产品最近一些关于可持续性和包容性的声明所抵消。这些产品极具多样化，包括伊塔乌联合银行、天然化妆品、巴西航空工业公司生产的飞机等等。同时，全球投资者正在寻找一种竞争力信号，他们不指望能达到苏黎世或香港的效率水平，但确实在寻找真正成熟地应对挑战的迹象。

Brazilian authorities at all levels have an opportunity to turn the World Cup into a teaching experience by the way they defuse protests and authentically fess up to the underlying concerns, both those of the protesters on the streets and the ones simmering quietly in their homes. To pass the test, they can't retreat behind the mask of perfection. Brazil is messy and imperfect. It should go with it and embrace its improvisational brilliance.

巴西各级行政部门都有机会通过平息抗议的方式将世界杯变成一次学习经历，不管是已经在街头抗议还是在家打算抗议的民众，政府应该坦然面对。为了通过大考，他们无法在完美的面具之后全身而退。巴西混乱不堪，也不完美。它应当认识到这一点，并拥抱其临时的辉煌。

（译者 非石头 编辑 齐磊）