Carlo Ancelotti left Richarlison out of Brazil’s 26-man squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, a clear selection decision that removes one of the team’s most recognisable attacking figures from the tournament roster.
The coach completed a 26-man roster and explained the choice by stressing the balance he sought across his forwards and midfielders. Ancelotti said, "I have a very talented squad. I’m convinced we’re going to have a great World Cup." The decision hands prominent roles to younger forwards such as Endrick and Rayan while still keeping established names available.
The immediate impact is tactical: Brazil will travel to the World Cup with the attacking group Ancelotti selected rather than the one that featured Richarlison as a regular option in recent cycles. The squad includes Neymar despite concerns over his fitness, and a wide set of attacking talents — Vinícius Junior, Raphinha and Gabriel Martinelli — that reflect the coach’s stated preference for players he believes fit his tactical direction.
That direction, in practical terms, favoured youth in forward areas. Endrick and Rayan earned places that in previous tournaments might have been contested by more experienced strikers. Ancelotti prioritised younger attacking options and players he believed fit the team’s tactical direction, a choice made more difficult by Brazil’s depth up front.
Richarlison’s absence is striking because of what he delivered at the last World Cup. He was Brazil’s leading scorer at the 2022 tournament and produced a memorable bicycle-kick goal against Serbia. He also previously worked with Ancelotti at Everton, which underlines that this was a selection driven by squad shape rather than personal unfamiliarity.
Reports suggested Richarlison’s international performances after Qatar did not match his World Cup level — a factor that, together with Brazil’s attacking depth, made selection difficult for Ancelotti. Those constraints pushed the coach toward a mix of youth and established stars rather than keeping every forward who had shone in Doha.
The omission matters today because it fixes Brazil’s attacking options for a tournament where the five-time world champion is chasing a sixth title and trying to end a 24-year wait for a trophy — Brazil last reached a World Cup final in 2002. The nation’s World Cup history includes wins in 1958, 1962, 1970, 1994 and 2002, and painful exits and results since then — notably the 7-1 semifinal loss to Germany in 2014 and quarterfinal exits in both 2018 and 2022 — that shape expectations now.
The friction is obvious: a player who once led Brazil in goals at a World Cup has been left out in favour of a younger attacking profile. That contrast places pressure on Ancelotti’s blueprint; it requires Endrick, Rayan and the other selected forwards to match or exceed the reliability Richarlison offered in 2022.
What happens next is straightforward and also unresolved. Brazil will compete at the 2026 World Cup with the squad Ancelotti named. The single most consequential unanswered question is whether Richarlison remains in a position to be recalled if form or injury alters the squad picture — the current announcement does not say whether Richarlison was unavailable through injury or whether a late call-up remains possible.
