Football in Brazil
Brazilian Football is your guide to football in Brazil. We are the #1 online source for all things related to Brazilian Football, whether you are hoping to find out information about the seleção (Brazil's national football team), the Brazilian Championships, the stadiums in Brazil, the culture of football in Brazil, or the great players who have donned the Brazil shirt.
It's fair to say that when Charles Miller introduced football to São Paulo Athletic Club in 1892, he would have had no idea just how much the sport would become an intrinsic part of everyday life. There are very few places where football is so passionately supported as in Brazil. It is said that when Brazil lost to Uruguay in the final of the 1950 World Cup, the entire nation mourned. The heartbreak was so profound that a name was created for the disaster—the Maracanazo—much like how an earthquake or hurricane might be titled.
Brazil currently stands as the most successful country in football history. They have won the World Cup five times (in 1958, 1962, 1970, 1994, and 2002), one more than Italy and Germany. They are one of only five countries to have won it more than once and one of eight to have ever won it at all. Brazilian players have won the Ballon d'Or six times in the past 15 years and the FIFA World Player of the Year eight times in its 19 years of existence. That's more than any other country.
Brazil can boast of having produced some of the greatest players ever, including Socrates, Carlos Alberto, Garrincha, Rivaldo, Jairzinho, Romário, Rivelino, Zito, Ronaldo, and Tostão, to name just a few. In the current Brazilian team, some of the finest players in the world include Neymar, Alisson Becker, Casemiro, and Marquinhos. And, of course, they boast having one of the greatest players ever to play the game, if not the best player: Pelé.
You can also look at Brazil's record in the World Cup to understand their position. After all, they are officially the most successful team in World Cup history.
Appearances at Finals:
| Year | Performance |
|---|---|
| 1930 | First round |
| 1934 | First round |
| 1938 | Third place |
| 1950 | Runners-up |
| 1954 | Quarter-finals |
| 1958 | Winners |
| 1962 | Winners |
| 1966 | First round |
| 1970 | Winners |
| 1974 | Fourth place |
| 1978 | Third place |
| 1982 | Second group stage |
| 1986 | Quarter-finals |
| 1990 | Second round |
| 1994 | Winners |
| 1998 | Runners-up |
| 2002 | Winners |
| 2006 | Quarter-finals |
| 2010 | Quarter-finals |
| 2014 | Fourth place |
| 2018 | Quarter-finals |
| 2022 | Quarter-finals |
Best Performance:
- Winners in 1958, 1962, 1970, 1994, and 2002.
Most Appearances at Finals:
- Cafu (1994, 1998, 2002, 2006) - 21.
Most Goals at Finals:
- Ronaldo (1998, 2002, 2006) - 15.
World Cup High:
- Becoming the first country to win three World Cups with what has been described as the world's greatest ever team in 1970. They defeated Italy 4-1 in the final and were graced by an attacking line-up that included Pelé, Tostão, Gerson, Jairzinho, and Rivelino. As close to attacking football perfection as has yet been seen.
World Cup Low:
- Losing the final of France 98, where star player Ronaldo played below expectations after suffering a convulsive fit in the hours leading up to the match. Brazil had no answer to a Zinedine Zidane-inspired France and crashed to a 3-0 defeat.
World Cup Legend:
- Pelé played in four World Cups and remains the only player to have won three World Cups. He was a champion for the first time as a 17-year-old at Sweden 1958. Having missed much of the 1962 tournament after suffering an injury in Brazil's second game, and then being kicked out of the tournament after rough-house tactics from Hungary and Portugal as Brazil exited, he secured his legend at Mexico 70, where he inspired the tournament's best-ever team, scoring in the final and providing the assist for Carlos Alberto's wonderful goal to clinch the 4-1 win. Overall, he played 14 games and scored a total of 12 goals.
Campeonato Sudamericano / Copa América
Brazil has also been a dominant force in the Campeonato Sudamericano, now known as the Copa América. Brazil has won the tournament nine times, with their first victory in 1919 and their most recent in 2019.
Appearances at Copa América:
| Year | Performance |
|---|---|
| 1916 | Runners-up |
| 1917 | Runners-up |
| 1919 | Winners |
| 1920 | Runners-up |
| 1921 | Runners-up |
| 1922 | 4th place |
| 1923 | Runners-up |
| 1924 | Declined to participate |
| 1925 | Runners-up |
| 1926 | Declined to participate |
| 1927 | Declined to participate |
| 1929 | Declined to participate |
| 1935 | Declined to participate |
| 1937 | Runners-up |
| 1939 | Declined to participate |
| 1941 | Declined to participate |
| 1942 | Runners-up |
| 1945 | Runners-up |
| 1946 | Runners-up |
| 1947 | Declined to participate |
| 1949 | Winners |
| 1953 | Runners-up |
| 1955 | Declined to participate |
| 1956 | 3rd place |
| 1957 | Winners |
| 1959 (Argentina) | Runners-up |
| 1959 (Ecuador) | 3rd place |
| 1963 | 4th place |
| 1967 | Declined to participate |
| 1975 | Group stage |
| 1979 | Group stage |
| 1983 | Runners-up |
| 1987 | Group stage |
| 1989 | Winners |
| 1991 | Runners-up |
| 1993 | Quarter-finals |
| 1995 | Runners-up |
| 1997 | Winners |
| 1999 | Winners |
| 2001 | Quarter-finals |
| 2004 | Winners |
| 2007 | Winners |
| 2011 | Quarter-finals |
| 2015 | Quarter-finals |
| 2016 | Group stage |
| 2019 | Winners |
| 2021 | Runners-up |
Best Performance:
- Winners in 1919, 1922, 1949, 1989, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2007, and 2019.
Copa América Legend:
- Zizinho is Brazil's top scorer in Copa América history with 17 goals, a record he shares with Argentina's Norberto Méndez.
Brazil's dominance in both the World Cup and Copa América underscores their status as a footballing powerhouse, with a rich history of success and a bright future ahead.