PHILADELPHIA — As joyous as soccer’s great moments can be, the sport often spends the rest of the time requiring its devotees to suffer.

On Saturday, in the first game of the Club World Cup’s knockout rounds, Palmeiras had to do a lot of suffering. The players had to battle Botafogo’s defense in this all-Brazilian matchup, and the green-clad fans who dominated the crowd of 33,657 at Lincoln Financial Field had to wait 100 minutes for a goal.

When it finally came from substitute winger Paulinho, it ended up enough to sustain them through 143 minutes of game clock: 90 minutes of regulation, 30 minutes of extra time and 23 minutes of stoppage time across the contest’s four periods.

The 1-0 win sent Palmeiras on to the quarterfinals, where they’ll face England’s Chelesa or Portugal’s Benfica at Lincoln Financial Field on July 4.

The party started before kickoff, when Botafogo fans stretched banners in their team’s black-and-white stripes over two sections of the Linc’s south stands. Palmeiras fans at the north end then raised cards displaying one of their team’s historic logos, dating back to when the team was founded in 1914 by Italian expats as “Palestra Italia.”

Once the fans started singing, they didn’t let up. Botafogo supporters chanted their team’s name to the tune of “When the Saints Go Marching In,” while Palmeiras’ green-clad throng — far outnumbering Botafogo’s across the rest of the stadium — had a wide range of offerings. Most centered on the team’s “Porco” nickname, for its pig mascot.

Later in the first half, the Palmeiras torcida (to use its proper Brazilian name) raised green and white cylindrical balloons to wave around, following a tradition across South America.

The quality of play was what it tends to be in Brazil’s league: not always pretty, but quick-thinking and fiercely intense. There were nine combined shots in the first half — Palmeiras took the first five — and 10 fouls, including a big mid-air collision between Palmeiras’ Agustín Giay and Botafogo’s Igor Jesus in the 22nd minute.

The last of those shots was the best of them, an 18-yard rocket by Palmeiras’ Richard Ríos in the fifth of six minutes of stoppage time, with Botagofo goalkeeper John Victor getting just a fingertip on it.

Strong defense wasn’t surprising

As the second half started, Palmeiras fans added flags to their array of props, green across one half of their end and white across the other. But their wait for a goal continued, including when a correct offside call negated a finish by teen phenom Estêvão.

There were times when Palmeiras did almost all the attacking, while Botafogo defended a lot and took its time when on the ball. But this was how Botafogo, the reigning South American champion, toppled reigning European champion Paris Saint-Germain in the group stage with a 1-0 upset.

After that game, PSG manager Luis Enrique praised Botafogo for having “defended very well, like almost no other team in [France’s] Ligue 1 or in the Champions League.” That ranking counts 17 French teams and 12 from the rest of Europe, including heavyweights Manchester City, Bayern Munich, Atlético Madrid (an especially stingy team) and Arsenal.

As if all the Palmeiras fans had done to will a goal into existence was not enough, they went to another level toward the end of regulation. Out came their own set of striped banners, covering not just the three main sections of their end but one more on each side of them.

Alas, that did not do the trick, so the game went to extra time with Palmeiras holding a 16-4 lead in shots.

The first extra time period gave the Alviverde — green-and-white in Portugese — the benefit of shooting toward their own fans. They remained as vocal as ever, including when Richard Ríos forced John into a full-stretch diving save of a 21-yard shot in the 97th.

Three minutes later, the goal finally came: Paulinho got the ball on the right flank, cut left, and slung a low shot to the far corner.

The celebration was as loud as you’d expect, from the players on the field to the eruption in the stands.

From there, it was Palmeiras’ turn to defend, with 20 minutes of extra time still to play. They did, if only just at times — such as when Botafogo’s Artur hit a long-range curler just wide of the left post from 25 yards.

Seeing red, then seeing it out

Another dramatic turn came in the 116th, when Palmeiras’ Gustavo Gómez earned his second yellow card of the day for a bear-hug tackle on Alexander Barboza near the midfield line, far away from where the ball was.

Gómez protested his innocence, but it was an obvious foul and French referee François Letexier — one of the world’s most prominent officials — didn’t hesitate.

FIFA’s head of refereeing Pierluigi Collina, must have appreciated that as he watched from a suite with FIFA president Gianni Infantino, South American confederation president Alejandro Dominguez, and other dignitaries.

When Letexier blew the final whistle, everyone on the Palmeiras bench sprinted onto the field, and the whole team ran to their fans to celebrate.

“It really wasn’t easy,” said Palmeiras centerback Bruno Fuchs, who played every second. “I don’t know what time Paulinho’s goal was, but we needed a lot of time to break through their [defensive] barrier. … I think we deserved to be winning earlier, but congratulations to our team for their willpower, their commitment, their resilience — we believed until the end, and we were happy to win 1-0.”

He then thanked the fans who made Philadelphia their latest home after doing so in New York and Miami in the group stage.

“They have made an incredible party and they have supported us hugely,” Fuchs said. “When you see them signing and chanting, we run for them, for the group, for our family, for everyone. They have been very important, and I hope they keep supporting us and keep believing with us.”

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