Gallery: World Cup

And shared the air with their Chilean neighbours

The stage was set at the Estádio Mineirão

Brazil goalkeeper Julio Cesar warmed up prior to the opening whistle...

And the house was rocking

Day 17 saw the first fixtures of the knock-out stages, as the hosts Brazil took on red hot Chile in Belo Horizonte. Droves of Brazil fans dominated the energetic crowd

While the Chile supporters were equally confident of their chances grab a win on the day

... which saw both teams come out totally going for it. Neymar theatrically flew across the pitch, putting himself in the way of a few challenges from Gary Medel and the rest of Chile's defence

Allowing midfielder Carlos Carmona to push forward and attack Brazil star Neymar and company

Chile keeper Claudio Bravo made more than one beautiful saves early in the first half

At 18' though, Brazil grabbed an early lead when Neymar's corner bounced off the shin of Chile defender Gonzalo Jara

Nevertheless, the score put Brazil up 1-0 quite early on

The own-goal appeared to many to be the work of Brazil defender David Luiz, who promptly celebrated as if he had done all the work

Chile forward Eduardo Vargas pushed ahead to force his side's hand with a bit of urgency, battling against Hulk along the way

And soon, Cesar let one slip by, as Chile forward Alexis Sanchez knocked a slow one past the line to score

Sanchez celebrated his equaliser, which bumped the score to 1-1 heading into the half-time break

To start the second, Hulk seemed to put Brazil ahead with a ball off his knee. The goal was disallowed, however, with referee Howard Webb booking the forward for a handball

Hulk protested while Webb stood his ground

All the while, Hulk's supporters in the crowd never lost love for their hero

While Brazil coach Luis Felipe Scolari maintained a fiery presence on the sidelines

Before he was sent off, the moustachioed forward Fred did what he could (which wasn't much)

A crowd of spectators at the Copacabana in Rio couldn't help but dance throughout it all

Yet, he missed spectacularly and seemed to realize the weight of his mistake

And Fred's replacement Jo had a remarkably clear chance to give Brazil the lead midway through the second...

By the end of 90' Chile defender Mauricio Isla and the rest of the backside kept the score drawn and forced the first extra time of this World Cup

Chile fans were restless with anticipation for the period of extra time

Before play resumed, Medel - who seemed in a great deal of pain - received some medical attention on the sidelines

Brazil defender and captain Thiago Silva did the same

Some camouflaged Brazil supporters cheered on their side as things got underway once more

Both sides came out looking for the decisive goal they needed

While Jo might have tried a bit too hard to make up for his prior failings, as he kicked Bravo in the chest while competing for the ball

Jo went back to work against Medel...

Neymar sought to expose this blow to Chile's defence, while Isla made sure to keep him in check

... who had to be stretchered off during the first period of extra time, with what appeared to be a thigh injury of some sort

And by the end of extra time, the score remained 1-1, with fans at Copacabana bracing themselves for the first penalty shootout of the 2014 World Cup

Brazil looked on just before the decisive penalties

Chile did the same

In the end, Brazil defeated Chile 1-1 (3-2) on a final save from Cesar on a Jara strike

Brazil celebrated securing their place - barely - in the quarterfinals

And for the second match of the day, Colombia fans gathered in Rio de Janeiro to watch their squad face off against an embattled Uruguay

A Uruguay supporter sported a mask of disgraced striker Luis Suarez, who was banned for the duration of this World Cup and beyond after allegedly biting an opponent during Uruguay's final Group D match against Italy

Cameramen prepared to capture all the action at the famed Estádio Maracanã

Even though Suarez was watching the match back home in Montevideo, you would never know it by scanning the crowd

Cavani and midfielder Alvaro Gonzalez protested one of their side's nine first half fouls

Uruguay skidded into the half-time break, down 1-0 and in need of a real jump-start. Colombia fans were no doubt enjoying their advantage

And both teams lined up to sing their anthems with gusto under the bright lights

Colombia's fans erupted at the play

Both sides came out playing ferociously and emotionally. Here, Uruguay forward Edinson Cavani controls the ball against Colombia defender and captain Mario Yepes

While forward Diego Forlan looked oddly indifferent toward Yepes' oncoming dive

At 28' Colombia's rising star midfielder James Rodriguez handled and rocketed what may be the goal of the tournament so far past Uruguay keeper Fernando Musalera

Rodriguez celebrated putting Colombia up 1-0 and scoring in the sixth successive game for his country

Forlan and Yepes continued to have it out on the pitch

At the start of the second, Colombia defender Cristian Zapata and Uruguay defender Maximilliano Pereira seemed to signal their sides making some peace

Even when Rodriguez struck again, this time at 50' minutes with his right foot

The Colombians danced as they lengthened their lead to 2-0, although with quite a bit of football left to play

Uruguay defender Jose Gimenez and Colombia defender Pablo Armero battled it out for the ball, trying to allow both of their sides to create some more chances

But in the end, it was Colombia's day. The squad celebrated making history for their country - Colombia will now travel to past the World Cup Round of 16 for the first time, where they will face Brazil in the quarterfinals on 4 July

Gallery: World Cup - Day 17

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