PREVIEW: Last dance for Neymar as Brazil look to break World Cup curse | OneFootball

Five-time winners Brazil will be aiming to end their 22-year wait for a World Cup title when they begin their 2026 campaign against Morocco in New Jersey.

Since getting their hands on the trophy in Japan in 2002, which also saw their run of three consecutive World Cup finals come to an end, Seleção have crashed out at the quarter final stage in four of the last five tournaments.

Aiming to land the game’s biggest prize for a sixth time, there’s no better coach to lead the Little Canary than Carlo Ancelotti, who has delivered a record five UEFA Champions League titles. He’ll make his World Cup managerial debut against Morocco.

Brazil’s best run since in the World Cup since tasting victory in Japan was when they made the last four as hosts in 2014, yet the tournament ended with the remarkable 7-1 semi-final thrashing at the hands of eventual winners Germany.

It’s been a turbulent start to international management for the former Real Madrid and Chelsea boss, losing to Bolivia, Japan and France in the nine matches that followed qualification – with important victories against Ecuador and Paraguay before then.

Naming a 26-man squad for the tournament didn’t come without controversy for the Italian either.

The inclusion of Neymar off the back of an injury-laden year grabbed most of the headlines, despite being the nation’s all-time leading scorer. The Santos winger hasn’t featured for his country since 2023 and was a somewhat surprise recall.

There were several high-profile omissions from the squad too, with Chelsea forward Joao Pedro and Tottenham striker Richarlison both snubbed, highlighting the depth in quality among the country’s attackers.

Neymar will join the likes of Casemiro and Marquinhos as part of the senior group within the roster, which boats several exciting young talents such as Endrick – who spent the season on loan at Lyon from Real Madrid – and Bournemouth’s Rayan.

Figuring out the best starting lineup could prove tricky for the Seleção manager, particularly when it comes to Neymar as the 34-year-old faces stern competition from Vinicius Junior on the left wing.

Brazil have topped their group in each of their last 11 World Cup campaigns but doing so at this year’s iteration may prove more challenging against African Cup of Nations winners Morocco, who reached the last four in Qatar.

They beat Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal as well as Spain during their famous run four years ago, and while Scotland and Haiti may prove easier for the all-time leading winners Brazil will still back themselves to down the AFCON champions.

North America has proved a happy World Cup hunting ground for Seleção in previous years. Brazil emerged victorious in 1970 in Mexico and lifted the trophy again in the United States in 1994, and will hope to find similar form at this year’s edition.

Brazil begin their campaign against Morocco in New Jersey on Saturday 13th June before travelling to Philadelphia to take on Haiti a week later. Their final group stage match is against Scotland in Miami on Wednesday 24th June.