Neymar Jr. to represent Santos FC at the 2026 World Cup | OneFootball

The Prince of Vila, Neymar Jr., will be Santos FC’s representative at the 2026 World Cup. The Menino da Vila will play in his 4th edition of the tournament, the first wearing Santos’ sacred jersey.

He is the 15th Brazilian Santos FC player to be called up to the national team. Altogether, the Vila side now has 25 call-ups to compete in the most important football tournament in the world. King Pelé, with 4 call-ups, and Zito and Edu, with 3 each, are the Santos players who have gone to the most World Cups. Robinho, in 2010, was the last Brazilian representative of Peixe at the World Cup.

Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior made his debut for Santos FC in 2009. He stayed until 2013 and etched his name in history. He then went to Europe, where he also made his mark at Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain.

At 33, he needed to come home. He needed the affection of the fans who had always supported him tirelessly. He needed the warmth of Vila Belmiro. Here, he recovered, rediscovered his best football, and found happiness again, scoring goals and becoming the team’s standout player.

Since his return to Peixe, the number 10 has played 45 matches. He has scored 18 times and provided 9 assists, totaling 27 direct goal involvements for Santos FC.

He also reached the milestone of becoming the 10th-highest scorer in Santos history, with 156 goals, surpassing Tite (1951-1959/1963) and Camarão (1923-1934).

And now, for the first time, he will represent Brazil at a World Cup as a Santos FC player.

Good luck to the Prince of Vila — the Santos nation will be here cheering for you and for the long-dreamed-of sixth world title.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.