Brazil begin World Cup bid under tempered hopes, as Morocco test opens Group C | OneFootball

Brazil begin their World Cup campaign this evening with expectations tempered from a torrid qualification campaign.

The South Americans are the only ever-present participators in World Cup history, but that record has rarely been in more jeopardy than during a rollercoaster 2026 qualification campaign.

Brazil finished fifth in CONMEBOL's 10-team table, lost a third of their games, and were beaten home and away by Argentina. Their reverse at the Maracanã ended a historic unbeaten home record inWorld Cup qualifiers.

Dorival Júnior was sacked in March 2025 and replaced byCarlo Ancelotti, a statement appointment that the Selecao hope can end their World Cup wait.

It's been 24 years since the most recent of Brazil's record five World Cup wins, when the 'Three Rs' of Ronaldo, Rivaldo, and Ronaldinho inspired success in Japan and South Korea.

That side similarly struggled through qualification before finding their feet in the finals. Ancelotti will hope his team can do the same.

This, however, is a different incarnation of arguably football's most soulful nation. A nation that once produced Cafu, Roberto Carlos, Dani Alves and Marcelo now lacks world-class options at full-back, while the search for an elite number nine continues. Igor Thiago, fresh from a fine campaign in the Premier League at Brentford, and teenage talent Endrick, will battle for that role.

The spine of the Selecao remains strong. Alisson offers a calming presence in goal, even amid a difficult season at Liverpool, while the centre-back axis is formed by Champions League finalists Gabriel and Marquinhos.

Further forward, Vinicius Junior and Raphinha represent genuine game-changers, even if neither has quite replicated their club form for the national team. Vinicius's struggles in particular have been well-documented, and the onus is on Ancelotti to coax more from the Real Madrid winger. However, the inclusion of an ageing andinjury-prone Neymar might come back to haunt Brazil, with Joao Pedro among those snubbed.

Brazil have been handed a tough test in Group C. AFCON winnersMorocco pose a banana skin in tonight's opening fixture, before fixtures with Haiti and Scotland. It's imperative that the five-time winners start well.

Since winning their first World Cup in 1958, Brazil have never gone six editions of the tournament without success.

This summer's final represents the sixth tournament since their last triumph, and curiously will be hosted in the same country as their 1994 win, a success that also ended five World Cups without success.

Ancelotti, who has won it all at club level, will hope that is an omen.