Brazil Soccer News: Meet The High School Girl That Won A Date With Neymar!

Brazil soccer jersey? $100 Flight from the United States to Spain? $650. Win a worldwide soft drink contest? $10,000. A date with Neymar? Priceless. At least that is what 16-year old American high school student, Rhiannon Conelley, believes. Conelley won a contest sponsored by Brazilian soccer drink Guaraná Antartica, and was given two choices: a $10,000 cash prize, or an all expenses paid trip to Spain to meet Neymar da Silva Santos Jr. –known to the world as simply, Neymar.

Much to the dismay of family and friends, Conelley choose the latter and will be flown to Barcelona later this year to meet her soccer idol. Conelley is a junior who currently plays goalkeeper for her high school’s varsity soccer team and although she says she has received much criticism from people over social media for her decision to turn down the cash, she believes that the opportunity to travel to Spain to meet her idol is priceless.

“It feels good. I mean to go to Spain and meet your idol, it feels awesome,” the 16-year told the El Paso Times.

“I just wanted to meet Neymar, I thought that was more important than the $10,000. Everyone disagrees with that, but I’m sticking to my guns,” she said.

Conelley is a soccer junkie who knows virtually every stat on the Brazilian striker. She entered the Guaraná contest earlier this year during the World Cup and was required to submit a photo of why she should win the grand prize. Most of the contestants submitted photos of themselves in Neymar jerseys or holding a Guaraná soft drink. Conelley won the grand prize by submitting a photo of her wearing Neymar’s unmistakable #10 jersey and doing a variety of trick shots known as “dominadas.”

Conelley said she sent the photo into the contest in June, and by the time the World Cup ended she won in a landslide, receiving over 4,000 votes. According to Catalina Patron, the marketing coordinator for the Guaraná drink, more than 2,000 people in the United States entered the contest.

Patron has told Rhiannon that she can bring two people with her to Spain, and she has chosen her mother, and her soccer coach, Geraldo Alvarez. Alvarez told the paper that he was happy he was accompanying Rhiannon on the trip, but added that he believed she would meet Neymar at some point in her soccer career.

“She’s pretty good at what she does,” he said. “The star was going to meet the rising star.”

The 22-year-old soccer superstar who is known for his fancy footwork and creative hairstyles was busy on the pitch on Tuesday, as he scored four goals in a 4-0 rout of Japan during an international friendly. Simultaneously, Conelley was practicing for her upcoming match this weekend in East El Paso, and was quick to tell the media just how good, Neymar, and Seleção, really are.

“He can become the next perennial superstar like Lionel Messi, and he will bring Brazil a sixth World Cup Championship,” she believed.

But when pressed on what she will say to Neymar or ask him once she is finally face to face with her hero, she quickly blushed and got tongue-tied.

“I’ll ask him if he wants to marry me. Or maybe not, I don’t want to scare him too much,” she joked. “I don’t want him to call security to kick me out.”