The possibility that the Brazilian team has a red shirt as its second uniform in the 2026 World Cup displeased former players, rekindled the political debate about the symbology of the cloak, and creating a controversy at a time when the connection with the crowd is fragile.
The idea is not unanimous in the CBF (Brazilian Football Confederation) not only for the tradition of wearing blue as a second shirt, but mainly for the possibility of sharing the fans by choosing a color that is not present on the Brazilian flag, which would open a gap for critics to make political associations.
Since Footy Headlines reported about the change, right -wing politicians have come together to criticize possible change. Senator Flávio Bolsonaro (PL-RJ), the son of former President Jair Bolsonaro, said the exchange needs to be “vehemently repudiated” and repeated a sentence that his father usually uses in speeches: “Our flag is not red, and never will be.”
Edu, former left-pointed point of Santos and the Brazilian National Team in the 1966, 1970 and 1974 Cups, echoed the criticism. “Nothing to do, we are not a communist country. And of course the intention of this is totally political, but it has nothing to do with the history of our team. Brazilian team is green, yellow, blue and white,” he told Sheet.
“We were champions of the world with the hopscotch. The thing is already very ugly on the pitch, we already have a weak selection morally and psychologically. We don’t need this one more,” he added.
Paulo Sergio, former Brazilian National Team striker, world champion in 1994, said he would not trade blue for red, but could change his mind if he understood the concept. “Azul represents our flag since I know myself. In ten years of Europe have always recognized us for these colors,” he said.
In politics, red is traditionally associated with leftist parties, such as PT, by President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
In recent years, the right has created a strong connection with the yellow color, directly linked to the shirt of the Brazilian team, dividing the fans around the country.
“For some groups, [a mudança] It can be considered an affront, especially for these most polarized groups, on the right, who see the ghost of communism in everything, “said Professor Marco Antonio Carvalho Teixeira, from FGV-SP (Getúlio Vargas Foundation, São Paulo).
Nike, with which the CBF renewed its contract last year, extending the bond until 2038, for the amount of $ 100 million ($ 563 million) until the end of the commitment, was warned about it. The sporting supplier, however, decided to move on with her marketing strategy, which in addition to red color will take the symbol of Jordan, a brand controlled by Nike.
Publicly, however, neither Nike nor CBF confirms the making of the red shirt.
I just find one thing: the national team shirt is the most important thing you have. The Brazilian flag is green, yellow, blue and white, has no red. Not that I don’t like the red, my father was a jabaquara fan, Jabuca, which is all red. I think I should continue with the principle of following with the colors of Brazil, this is very important
Cássio Brandão, a collector of soccer shirts, holder of a record recorded by Guinness for the world’s largest collection, said the Confederation could follow a “dangerous path.”
“In completing this story we enter a path I do not like, and I consider it even dangerous. How much is taken care of its own history and how much it cannot curb these marketing movements,” he said.
“We need to be careful yet, the shirt has not been released, but there is a question that is a fact: the shirt of a nation represents a lot and that of the Brazilian team much more,” added Brandão.
In conversations with Nike, the CBF would have suggested launching the red with a third uniform to avoid criticism, but the company does not usually make three shirts for selections because it understands that models two and three could compete for sales.
According to Brandão, in Europe, this kind of more radical change is not that unusual. He points out, however, that there is always a purpose beyond the market.
“When Germany comes to Brazil to play the World Cup with a second shirt that makes a reference to Flamengo, a team of the largest fans in the country, she made a clear nod. A welcome card to be welcomed in the country. There she had a clear purpose. In Brazil what is the purpose?”
Throughout its history, the Brazilian team has already used alternative colors uniforms, which are not present in the Brazilian flag. On two occasions, he even used red shirts, both in games for the South American Championship, a competition that in 1975 would be renamed as Copa America.
The last time the Canarinho team used a cloak without their traditional colors was in 2023, when they acted all the black in the friendly against Guinea. At the time, the uniform was used as a form of protest against racism in football.
Although the “hopscotch” is the most famous, the blue shirt also brings good memories to fans of the Brazilian team. It was the model with which Brazil won its first world title in 1958 in Sweden. In all, the color has already been used on 12 occasions during World Cups, with eight wins for Brazil, three losses and a draw.
