Carlo Ancelotti has announced his final squad and Neymar is included!
The record scorer hasn’t played for his country since November 2023.
Yet he makes Ancelotti’s final 26-man squad ahead of the tournament in the Americas.
Other key names included Ederson staying in as a goalkeeping option despite a tough time since leaving Manchester City for Fenerbahce.
There were also huge cheers when players current playing in Brazil were included, particularly those at Flamengo.
But when Neymar’s name came out, the room burst into rapturous applause with some even dancing and singing.
Explaining the choice, Ancelotti told the media: “We’ve been monitoring Neymar’s health all year.
“We’ve seen him improve, he’s regained consistency, and he’s in good shape.
“We believe he’s an important player. He’ll have the same role and the same obligation as the other 25. He may play, he may not play, he’ll have the same responsibility as everyone else.”
He added on the complexion of the squad: “We prioritised experience.
“Throughout the year, the evaluation focused on the physical aspect. I want a team capable of winning the World Cup.”
Brazil’s 2026 World Cup squad in full
Goalkeepers: Alisson (Liverpool), Ederson (Fenerbahce), Weverton (Grêmio).
Defenders: Marquinhos (PSG), Gabriel (Arsenal), Bremer (Juventus), Ibáñez (Al Ahli), Léo Pereira (Flamengo), Wesley (Roma), Danilo (Flamengo), Alex Sandro (Flamengo), Douglas Santos (Zenit).
Midfielders: Casemiro (Manchester United), Bruno Guimarães (Newcastle), Fabinho (Al Ittihad), Danilo (Botafogo), Lucas Paquetá (Flamengo).
Forwards: Vinicius Jr. (Real Madrid), Raphinha (Barcelona), Matheus Cunha (Manchester United), Luiz Henrique (Zenit), Igor Thiago (Brentford), Endrick (Lyon/Real Madrid), Martinelli (Arsenal), Rayan (Bournemouth), Neymar (Santos).
Neymar has dealt with long-term injuries and a step down in quality moving to Al Hilal in Saudi Arabia.
Now back in Brazil with Santos, he’s been relatively injury free, but his side aren’t in the best form and are back in a relegation battle for consecutive seasons.
But that clean bill of health was clearly decisive for Ancelotti, scoring six goals and registering four assists in 16 games this season without much help from his teammates.
All of that is despite Neymar being accidentally subbed off at the weekend in his final match to impress Ancelotti.
Before the match he was seen in tears when the Brazil national anthem was played.
In March, he was left out of Ancelotti’s squad, meaning the coach wouldn’t get to see him play in person before announcing his final 26 for the World Cup.
Responding at the time, Neymar said: “I’m going to speak because I can’t stay silent.
“Obviously, I’m upset and sad about not being called up, but my focus remains the same: day after day, training session after training session, match after match.
“We will achieve our goal. The dream continues.”
And so it did.
Of the players included in the March squad, six were left out, including a surprise Chelsea duo.
These were: Hugo Souza (Corinthians) and Bento (Al-Nassr); full-back Kaiki (Cruzeiro); midfielders Andrey Santos (Chelsea) and Gabriel Sara (Galatasaray); and João Pedro (Chelsea).
Neymar also becomes the ninth player to make four Brazil World Cup squads, following Castilho (1950, 1954, 1958 and 1962); Djalma Santos (1954, 1958, 1962 and 1966); Nilton Santos (1950, 1954, 1958 and 1962); Pelé (1958, 1962, 1966 and 1970); Emerson Leão (1970, 1974, 1978 and 1986); Cafu (1994, 1998, 2002 and 2006); Ronaldo (1994, 1998, 2002 and 2006); Thiago Silva (2010, 2014, 2018 and 2022).
Speaking before he named his squad, Ancelotti said: “It’s a list compiled after a lot of observation over the years.
“Made with competence, passion, and knowledge. It was very good. Will it be a perfect list? I don’t think so.
“But it will be a list with the fewest possible mistakes so that we have the opportunity to have a spectacular World Cup.”
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