Brazil midfielder Casemiro believes that being placed “a little lower” than other top contenders could give his team an edge when the 2026 World Cup kicks off in North America from June 11 to July 19.
Brazil is the only team to have played in every World Cup and is the most successful nation with five titles. However, the Seleção have gone 24 years without lifting the trophy, and bookmakers now rank them behind Spain, France, and England in the race for the championship.
“We are not the number one favorite,” Casemiro told FIFA’s media channel after the team arrived in the United States on Tuesday. “Of course, we are in good form. We have a strong squad, a mix of experience and young talent. Maybe this time we are a little lower, but we are always ready, and that is a good thing.”
The 34-year-old midfielder said the South American side has gone through “a difficult cycle” ahead of the tournament, with the Brazilian Football Confederation appointing Italian coach Carlo Ancelotti and electing a new president last year. “It has been a difficult cycle with a coaching change, a presidential change, and a lot of instability. We have only been working with the coach for a year, but in reality only 40 days of training. I think we will enter the tournament in strong form.”
Brazil open Group C against Morocco on June 13 at East Rutherford, New Jersey, then face Haiti on June 19 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and close against Scotland on June 24 in Miami, Florida.
