3 min read
She didn’t see that coming 👀
The other day, during a soccer team’s training match in Brazil, an unlikely spectator decided to move in for a closer look at the action.
It was a macaw — and he wasn’t shy about letting his presence be known.
Bruna Benites, who plays for the team SC Internacional, was in position in the middle of the pitch when she spotted a feathered figure descending from the sky toward her.
“I looked ahead and saw that it was coming towards me,” Benites told Globo News. “I just turned around and thought it was going to pass [by me].”
However, the large parrot did not pass by. Instead, he landed on her head.
With that, the game was now on hold.
Here’s video of a stadium worker coming to usher the bird off the field:
Turns out, the macaw isn’t exactly a stranger. His name is Pelé. He’s a domesticated bird who lives with his licensed caretaker in a home near the stadium. He’s allowed to fly around as he pleases — and apparently, what pleases him most is soccer.
“He is a free animal,” Benites later wrote. ”He visits us frequently during training. Normally he watches everything from [behind the goal] … But yesterday he decided to see things from another angle.”
According to Benites, this is the first time Pelé has landed on someone’s head — and she’s pleased it happened to her.
“It was a really cool scene,” Benites said. “It’s a privilege.”