Music is an important part of the Brazilian makeup, and the women's Olympic football team is no different — win or lose.

Following Tuesday's 1-0 defeat to Britain at Wembley Stadium, the Brazilian players streamed toward the bus with their bags in one hand and various instruments in the other. Veteran midfielder Formiga carries a pandeiro and forward Cristiane holds a tantan while other teammates stream past with timbas and caixas that combine to produce that famed samba sound we associate with the likes of the sun, sand and the beautiful people of Rio de Janeiro's Ipanema Beach.

If you're lucky enough to be in the athletes village before Brazil plays, you can actually catch a performance too.

"We start playing after leaving our rooms in the village until we step on to the bus," Cristiane explains. "It continues to the stadium. It starts to quiet down once we get to the locker room since we have to get prepared."

Brazil will have to conjure up some of its best bossa nova for its quarterfinal match Friday in Cardiff with World Cup champion Japan awaiting at the Millennium Stadium.

— Paul Logothetis — www.twitter.com/PaulLogoAP

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