Santos without Neymar, 50-day World Cup pause and second-half hurdles | OneFootball

Neymar’s World Cup call has set the agenda at Santos, and the club now braces for a domestic pause that will shape their second half. The forward is due to join Brazil on 27 May.

Before he reports, there are three possible outings for Santos, the Sudamericana against San Lorenzo on Wednesday 20 May, the Brasileirão at Grêmio on Saturday 23 May, and the Sudamericana against Deportivo Cuenca on 26 May at Vila Belmiro. He is already ruled out of the first two. According to CNN, the Brasileirão stops between the end of round 18, slated for 30 May to 1 June, and round 19 on 22-23 July.

Santos host Vitória in round 18 within that 30 May to 1 June window, by which point Neymar should be with the Brazil squad. Brazil begin their campaign on 13 June against Morocco at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. With the World Cup running until 19 July, any club fixtures in that period will be without him.

Since returning in January 2025, Neymar has played 45 official games, scoring 18 with nine assists. Between 2 April and 17 May he was the forward called up for the World Cup with the most club minutes in that span, 862 in total, featuring in 10 of Santos’s 13 matches.

The hiatus hands Santos a rare mid-season block to work, and they could also have Sudamericana dates depending on progress. The second half opens in round 19 away to Botafogo at the Nilton Santos in Rio de Janeiro.

Neymar is due back after Brazil’s elimination or once the tournament concludes on 19 July. His contract runs to the end of 2026, and how he returns physically after a World Cup at 34 is an open question for supporters.

Source: Diario Do Peixe