Brazil — 2026 World Cup Squad

Start with the goalkeeper, because Brazil rarely lets you. Alisson has spent years at Liverpool turning half-chances into nothing, and a side that defends with Marquinhos shielding him and the two Arsenal centre-backs, Gabriel Magalhães and the cover around him, doesn't concede cheaply. That spine is the quiet reason Brazil should glide through Group C; Morocco aside, nobody here looks built to outlast them.

The noise comes higher up. Vinícius Júnior arrives off another draining season at Real Madrid, still the one full-back in the tournament nobody wants drawn against him. Raphinha is the surprise no longer, a Barcelona forward who decides matches rather than rotates through them, and Gabriel Martinelli gives the bench a runner who changes a tired game in minutes. Three attackers, three different ways to hurt you.

The worry isn't talent, it's temperament. Teams will sit deep and dare Brazil to be patient, and patience has never been their instinct. If Vinícius and Raphinha keep their heads when the spaces shrink, this is a team that wins it. If the frustration wins first, it gets complicated fast.