--- title: Neymar Challenge Sweeps Internet as Fun World Cup Victory description: Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior have lost his chance at 2018 World Cup glory for Brazil, but he won the internet with the Neymar challenge. canonical: https://time.com/5333146/neymar-challenge/ author: Ashley Hoffman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-07-09T13:28:25.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T07:53:43.670Z og:title: The Neymar Challenge Is Spreading Laughter Across the World og:description: He's getting everyone rolling World Cup 2018 style og:url: https://time.com/5333146/neymar-challenge/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0f93630c0b052c41/698934ddcf40a83c3fc4cab3/gettyimages-993008074.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2907 og:image:height: 1635 og:image:alt: Brazil v Belgium: Quarter Final - 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: The Neymar Challenge Is Spreading Laughter Across the World twitter:description: He's getting everyone rolling World Cup 2018 style twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0f93630c0b052c41/698934ddcf40a83c3fc4cab3/gettyimages-993008074.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # The 'Neymar Challenge' Is Spreading Laughter Across the World > Sponsored content. 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The Brief is available free at time.com/newsletters, where readers can select it along with any of TIME's other six newsletters. There is no subscription required to receive it. #### Is The Brief free? Yes. The Brief is a free daily email newsletter from TIME. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes The Brief? The Brief is led by editor Richard Hall and draws on reporting from TIME's newsroom. Every edition is assembled by TIME editors rather than generated automatically. by [Ashley Hoffman](https://time.com/author/ashley-hoffman/) ## Ashley Hoffman Jul 9, 2018 1:28 PM UTC  KAZAN, RUSSIA - JULY 06: Neymar Jr of Brazil goes down injured during the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia Quarter Final match between Brazil and Belgium at Kazan Arena on July 6, 2018 in Kazan, Russia. (Photo by Buda Mendes/Getty Images) KAZAN, RUSSIA - JULY 06: Neymar Jr of Brazil goes down injured during the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia Quarter Final match between Brazil and Belgium at Kazan Arena on July 6, 2018 in Kazan, Russia. (Photo by Buda Mendes/Getty Images) Buda Mendes—Getty Images by [Ashley Hoffman](https://time.com/author/ashley-hoffman/) ## Ashley Hoffman Jul 9, 2018 1:28 PM UTC When we think of the World Cup, we think of athletes at the top of their game eliminating the competition for shot at that golden Greek goddess of victory trophy. But even though world famous soccer great [Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior](http://time.com/5328519/neymar-stepped-on/) may have lost his chance at leading Brazil to 2018 World Cup glory, he managed to win big in a different way: He became the most [imitated player](http://time.com/5331753/neymar-parody-video/) of the tournament, getting people across the world rolling the way he does. The Brazilian forward’s team was knocked out of the World Cup on Friday after losing 2-1 to Belgium, but star player Neymar is still popping up in everyone’s social media feeds. He’s known for his formidable offense and fancy footwork, but recently he secured his place on the world stage with the hammy way he falls to the ground and rolls around. It’s the stuff of great drama, so his falls on the field inevitably became a meme. [Swiss broadcaster RTS](https://www.rts.ch/sport/football/international/coupe-du-monde-de-la-fifa/9691910-fifa-coupe-du-monde-2018-les-roulades-de-neymar-ont-coute-14-minutes-de-jeu.html?utm%5Fsource=dlvr.it&utm%5Fmedium=twitter) even attempted to tally his total time on the match, at 14 minutes. After making it to the quarterfinals, Brazil is out of the tournament. But people just can’t quit Neymar. The Neymar challenge sees people emulating the player, and the stunts are reverberating across the world. In fact, whole teams have made videos of themselves imitating his on-field antics with their best “Neymar.” The idea is simple. People shout Neymar and do their best imitation. A Swiss youth club coach, Club Tijuana and countless others have joined in on the craze of imitating the forward’s moves. Belgium fans turned tumbles into a drinking game. > [](https://twitter.com/vinzradio/status/1015355200868093953) > [](https://twitter.com/CapsNarrador/status/1015404158256664577) > [](https://twitter.com/fuentesilva/status/1015279892081135616) > [](https://twitter.com/indersohal/status/1015556370735628288) > [](https://twitter.com/nihatbehramoglu/status/1014823556465725447) KFC’s South Africa also made a minute-long ad mocking Neymar’s roll. > [](https://twitter.com/JackGrimse/status/1014862194918477824) Even dogs are getting in on the fun. > [](https://twitter.com/thenaturalcurve/status/1016293339937869829) > [](https://twitter.com/america%5Fnito/status/1014609446314573824) He’s not the first athlete to showcase passion on the field, and he’s certainly given the tournament a major dose of levity. Neymar has yet to address the challenge himself. > [](https://twitter.com/RRWWE/status/1013812704744824833) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5333146/neymar-challenge/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5333146/neymar-challenge/"},"headline":"The 'Neymar Challenge' Is Spreading Laughter Across the World","datePublished":"2018-07-09T13:28:25.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:53:43.670Z","description":"Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior have lost his chance at 2018 World Cup glory for Brazil, but he won the internet with the Neymar challenge.","url":"https://time.com/5333146/neymar-challenge/","keywords":["Newsfeed","Soccer","onetime","World Cup 2018"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0f93630c0b052c41/698934ddcf40a83c3fc4cab3/gettyimages-993008074.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Ashley Hoffman","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/ashley-hoffman/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0f93630c0b052c41/698934ddcf40a83c3fc4cab3/gettyimages-993008074.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Brazil v Belgium: Quarter Final - 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia","caption":"Neymar of Brazil reacts at full time with Belgium","creditText":"Buda Mendes—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5333146/neymar-challenge/","name":"The 'Neymar Challenge' Is Spreading Laughter Across the World"}}]}] ```