Six-fingered Brazilian family hopes to bring national soccer team extra luck as it guns for its sixth World Cup title

A family in Brazil believes counting on one hand can bring good luck to the country's soccer team during this World Cup - because each member has an extra finger.

All members of the Silva family, from suburban Brasilia, were born with an extra digit on each hand as a result of a genetic condition known as polydactyly. They hope a squad led by Neymar can lead 'Canarinho' to their sixth title.

The team is known as Canarinho for its yellow and green kits that have remained virtually unchanged since the 1970s glory days of Pele, widely considered the greatest player that ever lived.

Attention was drawn to the family during the 2010 World Cup, as Brazilian media became aware and descended on them during the buildup to the tournament in South Africa.

They join the rest of the South American nation in crossing their fingers hoping the Pentacampeoes will add to its record five World Cup titles. 

'Since the last World Cup we wanted Brazil to become hexacampeao,' said Ana Carolina Santos da Silva, using the Portuguese term for 'six-time champion' that would be the envy of the soccer world. 'But it didn't happen, so this year we really want Brazil to achieve the sixth.'

Rather than recoil in the face of stares by curious onlookers, the 14 members of the family spanning four generations seem to embrace their physical difference with pride and unbridled optimism.

Far from a hindrance, having an extra finger seems to help the Silva family perform domestic chores and pursue musical talents. Fourteen-year-old Joao de Assis da Silva shows off his dexterity moving up and down his guitar's fret board.

His 8-year-old cousin, Maria Morena da Silva, has dreams of making music too. 

'I have never played the piano, but I want to learn, and it might be easier playing with six fingers,' she says.