Mundial Ronaldinho Soccer 64 Opening

About

Mundial Ronaldinho Soccer 64 Opening refers to the opening animation of Mundial Ronaldinho Soccer 64, a bootleg Brazilian version of the 1996 Nintendo 64 video game International Superstar Soccer 64. Starting in May 2020, the opening has been subject to numerous remixes and parodies, often appearing as a bait-and-switch punchline.

Origin

On December 20th, 1996, football simulation video game Jikkyou J. League Perfect Striker was released in Japan by Konami.^[1] On July 31st, 1997, the game was released in North America as International Superstar Soccer 64. The intro of the game is based on the gameplay footage which transitions into the main menu with an animation of a red-and-silver football flying in from beyond the screen, followed by the title of the game (shown below, left).

In January 1998, Peruvian video game developer TEG Peru released^[2] a bootleg version of the game, titled Mundial Ronaldinho Soccer 64, for the Brazilian market. The game intro was altered to feature two photographs of Ronaldo, with the title changed to "Mundial Ronaldinho Soccer 64" (shown below, right). In the bootleg version, the intro animation is followed by a person laughing and announcing the title of the game.

Hahahaha, Ronaldinho soccer!

On April 6th, 2020, Twitter^[3] user @TheEssem posted the clip of the intro animation to Twitter, with the video gaining 200 views. In the following week, they went on to use the clip as a response to a number of tweets.^[4][5][6]

pic.twitter.com/z5xXC24xHg

— new coke drinker (@TheEssem) April 6, 2020

Spread

On April 11th, 2020, YouTube^[7] user Luftogen uploaded the clip, with the upload gaining over 10,800 views in one month. On April 12th, 2020, Twitter^[8] account @RonaldinhoN64 was created, posting a single tweet containing the video. The post received over 250 retweets and 470 likes in one month, with the video gaining over 5,000 views.

On April 14th, 2020, Twitter^[12] user @Zeebrongis posted a bait-and-switch meme based on a clip from Animal Crossing: New Horizons that ended with the Mundial Ronaldinho Soccer 64 intro. The post received over 1,700 retweet and 4,600 likes, with the video accumulating over 62,900 views in one month (shown below).

HOLY SHIT MY TURNIP PRICES ARE SO HIGH #AnimalCrossing #ACNH #NintendoSwitch pic.twitter.com/aedwYXp6N1

— Liquid Ocelot (@Zeebrongis) April 14, 2020

The format did not see major spread until on May 1st, 2020, Twitter^[9] user @chefmaeda posted a bait-and-switch meme based on the cooking scene from Garden of Words. The post received over 11,800 retweets and 35,900 likes, with the video accumulating over 362,700 views in three days (shown below).

Why does anime food look so good and aesthetically pleasing… pic.twitter.com/OBe38jumtK

— serpy (@chefmaeda) May 1, 2020

The tweet prompted the viral spread of the clip and its use as a bait-and-switch meme on Twitter in the following days. For example, on May 1st, 2020, Twitter^[10] user @Gay_Furby posted an edit that received over 3,100 retweets and 10,400 likes in three days (shown below). A same-day meme by @Tortokhod^[11] gained over 1,400 retweets and 3,000 likes in the same period.

SPOILERS BRO DID GUMBALL JUST BECOME A………..? THIS SHOW'S THIRD EYE IS FULLY OPENED WTF pic.twitter.com/SftYucXLjz

— morgan 🌙 fuck shit up, don't forget about it! (@Gay_Furby) May 1, 2020

Various Examples

pic.twitter.com/LVPSyRSkfS

— yahiamice. (@Yahiamice) May 2, 2020

Whenever I come back to Bad Apple I wonder if we'll ever top these beautiful transitions 😌 pic.twitter.com/SyP68kVK8Y

— Cakewalking (@Tortokhod) May 1, 2020

Template

Search Interest

External References