Back to football, where Brazil hold the record for the number of World Cup titles, with five. But on home soil four years ago, the team was humiliated in the semi-finals, falling 7-1 to eventual champions Germany. That defeat shook the confidence of the country's fans. Now the players hope to restore that pride, this summer in Russia. Paulo Cabral has details.

The 2018 World Cup takes place this June in Russia. Brazil and Germany recently played a friendly match in Berlin. It was the first time the two teams had met since Brazil's 7-to-1 loss to the Germans in the semifinals of the 2014 World Cup. This time, Brazil played well enough for a 2-to-1 victory. It can't be counted as payback.

MIGUEL MACHADO UNIVERSITY STUDENT "Today, it was just a friendly match. A real payback would be winning the World Cup in 2018, even if it's not by beating Germany. If we win the next World Cup, that will alleviate the 7-to-1 defeat."

But it did help to boost the confidence of some fans.

GABRIEL CASTRO ARCHITECT "I thought this match would be harder. But I think Coach Tite is doing a good job with the players and results are showing. I think we'll be better than I was expecting in the World Cup."

After the 2014 defeat, Brazilian football went into a period of soul-searching, with many questions and little answers for the decisive loss. Some attributed it to corruption and conflict of interests at CBF -- Brazil's National League -- often accused of putting business and political interests above the sport. This football journalist says the 2014 match did little to change Brazil's football, even if the game itself improved.

ANDRE KFOURI FOOTBALL ANALYST "CBF, the Management of Brazilian Football, never changes. It's always the same -- too much politics. Inside the pitch, the biggest change was when Tite came with a new mentality, more or less the same players, but with a different vision, and he was able to turn everything around and to make, in two years, Brazil the team that it is right now."

PAULO CABRAL SAN PAULO "The defeat to Germany in the 2014 World Cup -- played here in Brazil -- is often described as the most traumatic experience in Brazil's football history, comparable only to the team's loss to Uruguay in the final match of the 1950 World Cup, which also took place on home soil."

In the 1950 Cup, Brazilians got to the final match in Rio de Janeiro ready to celebrate. A draw would be enough to secure the title -- after a victorious campaign during the tournament. But Uruguay beat the home team, 2 to 1, and Brazil had to wait until the 1958 Cup in Sweden to become the World Champions for the first of its five times.

MAURO BETING FOOTBALL ANALYST "Brazil still holds the record in World Cup titles, and may win its sixth one this year, but it suffered its ugliest losses in the two World Cups it organized. The 7-to-1 defeat brought us back to reality, and made us realize that, while we may be the country of football, and have the most titles, there are other great teams out there."

The defeat in 2014 was a serious blow to fans. Over the last couple of years, it's been slowing coming back. The next test will be in Russia in June. Paulo Cabral, CGTN, Sao Paulo.