The for the to great fanfare and there is no shortage of stories within the roster announced by Carlo Ancelotti on Monday in Rio de Janeiro.
Central defender Marquinhos heads to North America with an ever-growing, record-breaking trophy cabinet. Meanwhile, Flamengo’s Danilo brings a proven track record of scoring decisive goals in Brazil, and , for his part, is poised to equal a World Cup milestone held by Pele.
FIFA shares 26 fascinating facts about the players who will be aiming to secure a historic sixth World Cup title for .
1 – Alisson Goalkeeping runs in the family. The Liverpool No1’s father played in goal in the amateur ranks, while his older brother by five years, Muriel, has enjoyed spells with Internacional, Fluminense, and Vitoria, and currently starts for Nautico.
2 – Ederson Now plying his trade at Fenerbahce, Ederson carved his name into Premier League history as the goalkeeper with the most assists in the competition's history, registering seven during his tenure with Manchester City.
3 – Weverton , the goalkeeper featured in the traditional Sao Paulo Youth Football Cup in 2005 for Juventus de Rio Branco, catching the eye against Corinthians. He was subsequently signed by the Coringao, although he won most of his silverware after joining arch-rivals Palmeiras in 2018.
4 – Alex Sandro The left-back made 327 appearances for Juventus. This meant that the defender drew level with Czech midfielder Pavel Nedved as the foreign player with the most appearances in the shirt of La Vecchia Signora.
5 – Bremer The Juventus centre-back was named after Andreas Brehme, the legendary international who scored the winning goal against in the final of the 1990 FIFA World Cup Italy™.
6 – Danilo Despite not being an attacking player, he has a track record of scoring crucial goals for Brazilian clubs. While at Santos, Danilo found the net in the 2011 Copa Libertadores final against Penarol, as well as in the semi-final of the FIFA Intercontinental Cup™ that same year against Kashiwa Reysol. For Flamengo, against Palmeiras, and , a victory that took the Mengao to the final of the that same year against Paris Saint-Germain.
7 – The left-back was first called up to the Seleção in 2013 while he was still playing for Nautico of Recife. The defender's inclusion ended a lengthy drought for Timbu players representing Brazil, since forward Nado donned the yellow jersey in 1966.
8 – Gabriel Magalhaes The Brazilian is the defender with most goal involvements in Arsenal's Premier League history, with a tally of 20 goals and five assists. He surpassed Frenchman Laurent Koscielny to break the record in March.
9 – Ibanez Renowned for his tactical versatility, Ibanez is primarily a central defender who can also play at right-back. While a youth player, he also played as a central and a defensive midfielder.
10 – Leo Pereira In what remains his only experience abroad to date, Leo Pereira played alongside Kaka at Orlando City in 2017, taking on invaluable advice from the former AC Milan and Sao Paulo idol.
11 – Marquinhos The centre-back secured his 11th Ligue 1 title this season, further cementing his status as the most decorated player in French top-flight history. Marquinhos now holds more league titles than Saint-Etienne (10) and Olympique de Marseille (9), the two clubs trailing Paris Saint-Germain as France's most successful teams - the club from the capital now sits on 14 championships.
12 – Wesley Tipped to start at right-back for the Seleção, Wesley spent a large portion of the 2025/26 campaign playing on the left wing for Roma, showing his versatility.
13 – Bruno Guimaraes He proudly wears the No39 shirt for Newcastle United as a tribute to his father, who worked as a taxi driver with the cab number 039.
14 – Casemiro The defensive midfielder is tied with former left-back Marcelo as the Brazilian with the most UEFA Champions League titles on his CV, having lifted the trophy five times, all in the colours of Real Madrid.
15 – Danilo Santos While playing at a football school in Bahia state, a 15-year-old Danilo played in a U-14 tournament as a goalkeeper, taking advantage of a rule that allowed an older player in that position. The current Botafogo star excelled between the sticks, even saving a penalty.
16 – Fabinho During his time at Monaco, he successfully transitioned from right-back to establish himself as a defensive midfielder under the leadership of Leonardo Jardim, the current manager of Flamengo.
17 – Lucas Paqueta When Flamengo signed Lucas Paqueta from West Ham United in January for €42 million, he became the most expensive signing in the history of Brazilian club football.
18 – Endrick By scoring three goals for Lyon in a 5-2 away victory this season, Endrick became the youngest foreign player to score a hat-trick in Ligue 1, as well as the youngest player ever to achieve the feat for Les Gones.
19 – Gabriel Martinelli Making his professional debut for Ituano in 2018 at just 16 years and nine months, he became the youngest player to feature for the club this century. The following year, he was named the breakthrough player of the Sao Paulo State championship, earning a move to Arsenal.
20 – Igor Thiago Brentford’s talisman, the centre-forward comfortably shattered the record for the most goals scored by a Brazilian in a single Premier League campaign. He currently has 22 to his name, eclipsing the previous milestone of 15 held jointly by Matheus Cunha, Roberto Firmino, and Gabriel Martinelli.
21 – Luiz Henrique Before turning professional on the pitch, he excelled on the mat. Luiz Henrique practised judo as teenager, eventually choosing the turf over the tatami after establishing himself in Fluminense’s youth team.
22 – Matheus Cunha The Manchester United forward has never played professional club football in his homeland, but he has already secured his place in Seleção history: he opened the scoring in Brazil's 2-1 victory over Spain in the final of the Tokyo 2020 Men’s Olympic Football tournament, playing a pivotal role in securing the gold medal.
23 – Should the Santos talisman be confirmed as Brazil's No10, Neymar will equal Pele as the player to have worn the iconic shirt number at the four FIFA World Cups.
24 – Raphinha Music provided the bond between Raphinha and Ronaldinho. The Barcelona forward's father was a member of the samba group, Samba Tri, and forged a close friendship with 'R10', often performing at the legendary playmaker's parties.
25 – Rayan He is the son of Valkmar, a former defender for Vasco da Gama in the 1990s, who was part of the Brazil squad at the 1993 South American U-17 Championship. In that tournament, Rayan’s father played alongside Ronaldo, who finished as the competition's top scorer with eight goals, though the striker’s exploits were not enough to lift Brazil above a fourth-place finish on that occasion. At club level, Valkmar also shared the pitch with Romario.
26 – Vinicius Jr On 16 April 2025, Vinícius Jr. reached the milestone of 105 goals for Real Madrid, surpassing Ronaldo to become the highest-scoring Brazilian in the history of the Spanish giants.
Sources: FIFA Official
