Carlo Ancelotti explains why he sings the Brazil national anthem, why don’t Thomas Tuchel and Co?

June 29, 2026

Carlo Ancelotti has been belting out the Brazilian national anthem, but he is a surprising outlier.

The Italian is one of a number of coaches at the World Cup not coaching their nation, but as far as Brazil goes, he’s already one of their own.

Why Ancelotti sings the Brazil anthem

Explaining his decision for the three opening games, he said: “I am, with honour, part of this country.

“I only knew one anthem, which was the Italian one. Now I’m learning another, the Brazilian one.

“It’s very beautiful and also very difficult. I keep reading the words and singing, because I like to sing.”

However, of the 48 teams at the World Cup, 27 are foreign, and only three others sing their national anthem.

Other coaches who sing the national anthem

One is Spaniard Roberto Martinez who sings the Portugal national anthem, much like during his time at Belgium.

Another is American Canada coach Jesse Marsch.

Before the tournament Marsch said they had to ‘beg’ players to sing the US anthem when he was an assistant in 2010.

But at Canada: “These guys belt it out to the top of their lungs because they want to show the country how proud they are to be here, to be Canadians and to represent what Canada is.”

The third is Englishman Graham Potter, who speaks fluent Swedish.

“You go on to YouTube and you’ll see me singing it,” he said before the tournament.

“Everybody has to make a choice, like I said, and for me, in that moment when I’m in Sweden and I’m representing the Swedish national team, then of course I feel part of the team, I feel part of the country, and it’s nice for me to do that.

“But I’m not saying that everybody should do that, of course.”