The Brazilian team will face a taboo in its debut: Brazil has never been a World Cup champion when it played its first match at the stadium or in the city that will also host the final.
The Brazilian team’s debut will be this Saturday (13th), at 7pm, at the MetLife Stadium, in East Rutherford (New Jersey, USA), the same location as the decision on July 19th.
In the history of the World Cups, this situation happened six times with Brazil. In all cases, the team did not win the title, and on two occasions they were defeated in the final.
The taboo began in the first World Cup, in 1930, when Brazil started with a 2-1 defeat to the then Yugoslavia, at Parque Central, in Montevideo, and ended up eliminated in the first phase. The decision, which gave Uruguay its first title, took place at the Centenário stadium.
In 1950, in their first World Cup at home, the team made their debut at Maracanã and beat Mexico 4-0. In the final, they suffered a 2-1 defeat to Uruguay, in the match that was known as the “Maracanazo”.
Only in 1998 did history repeat itself again. Brazil beat Scotland 2-1 at the Stade de France, in Greater Paris, in the debut. In the final, they were defeated 3-0 by the French team led by Zidane, in a match also marked by another historic fact: striker Ronaldo’s nervous breakdown hours before the match.
In 2006, the Brazilian team opened the World Cup with a 1-0 victory over Croatia, at the Olympic stadium in Berlin, Germany. Brazil ended up being eliminated in the quarter-finals by France, once again under the command of Zidane, 1-0, goal by Henry.
In South Africa, in 2010, Brazil started with a 2-1 victory against North Korea, at Ellis Park, in Johannesburg, and was eliminated by the Netherlands in the quarter-finals. The decision, which gave Spain its first title, was at Soccer City, in Johannesburg.
In the last World Cup, in 2022, in Qatar, the team beat Serbia 2-0 in their debut. in Lusail. Brazil ended up being eliminated again in the quarterfinals, by Croatia, on penalties. In the final, Lusail won the Argentine Messi.
In the five victories of the Brazilian team, the debut never took place at the final stadium.
In 1958, from Uddevalla to Stockholm; in 1962, from Viña del Mar to Santiago; in 1970, from Guadalajara to Mexico City; in 1994, from San Francisco (Palo Alto) to Los Angeles (Pasadena); and in 2002, from Ulsan, South Korea, to Yokohama, Japan.
In total, Brazil, the only country to compete in all World Cups, won 17 of its 22 games in its debut. There were three draws. The two defeats occurred in the first two editions of the World Cup: in 1930, against Yugoslavia, and in 1934, against Spain (the Brazilian team’s only game in that edition of the competition).
Brazilian players scored 49 goals on debuts, and goalkeepers conceded 19.
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