Brazil vs Morocco | 2026 FIFA World Cup Group C | Saturday, June 13 | 6PM ET | MetLife Stadium | East Rutherford

Brazil (-145) | Draw (+275) | Morocco (+450)
Over 2.5 Goals (+100) | Under 2.5 Goals (-130)
Brazil -1 (+115) | Morocco +1 (-160)

Saturday is our first true full slate of this World Cup with four games on the card, and we’re in for a treat with the day’s marquee fixture — Brazil vs. Morocco. The last time these two met competitively was at France ’98, where Ronaldo, Rivaldo and Bebeto fired the Seleção to a commanding 3-0 victory.

Twenty-eight years have passed, and the playing field has been relandscaped between these two nations thanks to Morocco’s rise and Brazil’s decline in recent years. In 2022, Morocco captured the world’s imagination by reaching the semifinals — the farthest an African nation has ever ventured at a World Cup. They built on that success earlier this year when they reached the Africa Cup of Nations final and were retrospectively and controversially declared champions for the first time since 1976.

Five-time world champions Brazil haven’t lifted the World Cup — or even reached a final — since 2002. A ninth Copa América at home in 2019 aside, the trajectory has been firmly downward, with the 7-1 humiliation by Germany on home soil at the 2014 World Cup, the lowest point in their history. Quarterfinal exits in each of their last two major tournaments — beaten on penalties at both the 2022 World Cup and the 2024 Copa América — bled into a chaotic qualifying campaign. A 4-1 rout at Argentina, their heaviest-ever qualifying defeat, caused a panicked CBF to break the bank for Carlo Ancelotti in May 2025, making him the highest-paid national team manager in the world.

On Saturday, we’ll find out just how level the playing field really is.

BRAZIL TEAM NEWS

On selection day, Carlo Ancelotti raised eyebrows by naming Neymar in his squad. The 34-year-old has struggled for fitness, but with Rodrygo and Estêvão both ruled out injured, Ancelotti had room to gamble on him. He’s unavailable for this match with a calf strain that ruled him out of both warm-up games. Neymar’s been one of the modern greats, and it would be lovely to see him enjoy a World Cup swansong with Brazil.

The selection also left people concerned about a lack of cover in central midfield: Bruno Guimarães, Casemiro, Fabinho, Lucas Paquetá and Danilo Santos aren’t enough bodies if one of them picks up an injury or suspension. A blessing in disguise arrived when right-back Wesley suffered a thigh muscle injury in the 2-1 friendly win over Egypt, ruling him out of the tournament. This opened the door for Ancelotti to call up Manchester United-linked Ederson. The disciplined 26-year-old can come off the bench to screen the backline and bring energy to the middle of the park in place of the aging legs of Casemiro (34) and Fabinho (32).

Up front, Ancelotti has three very different options in Igor Thiago, Endrick and Matheus Cunha. Against Morocco’s deep, compact block, I think the hard-working Thiago gets the nod: with minimal space to run in behind, Brazil need a striker who can win his aerial duels, occupy the centre-backs and hold the ball up for Vinícius, Raphinha and Paquetá to play off — and that physical, target-man game is what Thiago has done all season for Brentford, racking up 25 goals to finish as the highest-scoring Brazilian in a single Premier League campaign.

Brazil Predicted Lineup 4-2-3-1

Manager: Carlo Ancelotti

GK: Alisson
RB: Danilo | CB: Marquinhos (C) | CB: Gabriel Magalhães | LB: Alex Sandro
CM: Bruno Guimarães | CM: Casemiro
RW: Raphinha | AMF: Lucas Paquetá | LW: Vinícius Júnior
CF: Igor Thiago

Embed from Getty Images

MOROCCO TEAM NEWS

After nearly four years and arguably Morocco’s most successful spell, manager Walid Regragui walked away amid reported friction with the federation. Into the fire stepped Mohamed Ouahbi, whose U20 World Cup victory last year has been rewarded with a crack at the real thing.

Ouahbi enters the tournament with problems to solve after Morocco’s final warm-up, a 1-1 draw with Norway, left two starters hurt. Abdessamad Ezzalzouli, forced off at half-time with a knee injury, is likely to miss the group phase with Soufiane Rahimi deputizing. First-choice left back Noussair Mazraoui will be touch and go right up to kickoff as he battles a shoulder injury suffered in the 29th minute.

The good news for Morocco is that their most dangerous side — the right — remains intact. Achraf Hakimi and Brahim Díaz are both fit, and that’s where the Atlas Lions are at their most threatening: Hakimi marauding forward from right-back, Díaz drifting in the pockets just ahead of him. Any questions over the captain have been put to bed — he shook off the thigh injury that threatened to keep him out of the Champions League final and came through all 120 minutes of PSG’s win over Arsenal, penalty included. Hakimi arrives at this tournament fully fit.

Morocco Predicted Lineup 4-2-3-1

Manager: Mohamed Ouahbi

GK: Bono
RB: Achraf Hakimi (C) | CB: Nayef Aguerd | CB: Chadi Riad | LB: Noussair Mazraoui
CM: Sofyan Amrabat | CM: Azzedine Ounahi
RW: Brahim Díaz | AMF: Bilal El Khannouss | LW: Soufiane Rahimi
CF: Ayoub El Kaabi

MATCH BREAKDOWN

Brazil enter the tournament in a good moment — a 6-2 thrashing of Panama followed by a 2-1 win over Egypt — though Ancelotti has been careful not to read too much into either. The more telling fixtures are earlier in his tenure: defeats to France and Japan and a draw with Tunisia showed this Brazil side can be exposed by disciplined, compact opponents. That is precisely the foundation this Morocco side is built upon.

Ancelotti, unsurprisingly, remains unruffled. After the win over Egypt, he revealed that his team selection was effectively settled. “I have decided the starting lineup to face Morocco,” he said. “The changes I make will depend on some details, but the idea is clear.” I think that idea is to keep it tight early. The old saying that you can’t win a game in the first half but you can lose it feels particularly relevant here. With the group’s weaker nations, Scotland and Haiti, still to come, neither side needs to overcommit from the outset.

Morocco, in particular, are likely to prioritize defensive solidity given their injury concerns, and Ouahbi will want a disciplined display to limit the space available to Brazil’s attacking talent in his first competitive match. Ancelotti, meanwhile, will be fully aware of the threat posed by Hakimi and Díaz down Morocco’s right flank and will be keen to avoid being exposed in transition.

Ancelotti himself flagged where this game could turn. “The resources the national team has on the bench are very important… I know the five substitutions we can make will help a lot,” he said after the Egypt win, singling out Rayan, who sat that day. “The bench can also be a key to success.”

THE BET

This match will likely be a cagey first half with both teams reluctant to take unnecessary risks. As we enter the second half, fatigue, tactical tweaks and especially substitutions will come into play. Ancelotti can call upon Endrick, Cunha, Rayan or Martinelli from the bench to ask different questions of Morocco’s defense and stretch the contest, creating the space, chances and goals the first half will lack.

Pick: 2nd Half Highest Scoring Half +110

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