30 Photos Of The Pickup Soccer Fields That Produce Brazil's Best Players

The Brazilian word for pickup soccer - "pelada" - means "naked" (specifically, a naked woman).

It's soccer at its most basic. All over Brazil there are pickup games going on at all times, despite the constraints of space, equipment, and money.

This pickup soccer culture is often cited as an essential component in the Brazilian national team's "joga bonito" style - which is the most flamboyant and improvisational in the world.

And many of the players who went on to become stars in Europe started on the makeshift fields of Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo.

Looking through these photos gives you the flavor of Brazil. Some of the fields are crammed in between buildings, some are cut out of the rainforest, and others sit right on the edge of the beach.