Brazil
Five-time World Cup winners knocked out at 2026's last 16; Neymar retired after the exit.
Brazil are the most successful nation in World Cup history, five titles from 1958 to 2002, but were eliminated in the last 16 for a second straight tournament after Norway beat them 2-1 on 5 July 2026, a defeat that prompted record scorer Neymar's immediate retirement.
Last refreshed: 28 July 2026 · Appears in 4 active topics
Can Brazil finally win a sixth World Cup on American soil without Neymar?
Timeline for Brazil
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2026 FIFA World CupBackground
Brazil are the most successful nation in World Cup history, champions five times (1958, 1962, 1970, 1994, 2002) and present at every finals since the competition began. With more than 215 million people and South America's largest football infrastructure, the Selecao's results carry weight beyond the pitch, a status their technically expressive style has long reinforced as much a cultural identity as a sporting one.
Brazil opened the 2026 group stage with a 3-0 win over Haiti in Philadelphia on 20 June, Matheus Cunha and Vinicius Junior scoring in the first half while record scorer Neymar managed a calf strain . That followed a quarter-final exit on penalties to Croatia in 2022, extending a wait for a sixth title running since 2002.
Brazil's Neymar era ends in defeat
Norway ended Brazil's 2026 campaign in the round of 16, Erling Haaland scoring twice in a 2-1 win at MetLife Stadium on 5 July . Neymar announced his retirement from international football minutes later on the same pitch where his Brazil career began in 2010, leaving as the country's all-time top scorer with the trophy still elusive .
He had returned from a 20-month ACL layoff only in the group stage, entering as a late substitute against Scotland on 24 June, and the calf strain that kept him out of Brazil's opening two matches Left him without knockout-stage minutes before the exit. The defeat extends Brazil's wait for a sixth title to a second straight tournament since the 2022 quarter-final loss to Croatia.