Neymar confirms international retirement: ‘My time with Brazil is over’

Neymar Jr. had previously revealed that the 2026 World Cup was his last with Brazil. What remained unclear until now was what would happen with the forward in the upcoming matches for the Selecao. The player himself has now confirmed that he will no longer represent the national team.

“My time with Brazil is over,” he revealed to the press on Tuesday after being asked about his future with Carlo Ancelotti’s team. “I made history, I was very happy, I gave my blood, my life, and I always fought for the yellow jersey, but now I no longer want to do it.”

Although he had recently received key advice from legends such as Ronaldo, who suggested taking some time to carefully evaluate his next steps, that option was evidently ruled out by the Santos player.

After 16 years with the national team, Neymar‘s time representing his country is over. From now on, the question will be who steps up to take the reins and become the new idol of this team.

Neymar’s glorious career with Brazil

Neymar is the all-time top goalscorer in the history of the Brazil national team, having scored 80 goals in 130 senior appearances since making his debut in 2010. Beyond his goalscoring record, where he famously surpassed Pele’s tally of 77 goals, he is also the country’s all-time leading playmaker with 59 assists.

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Throughout his international career, Neymar featured in four FIFA World Cups (2014, 2018, 2022, and 2026), scoring 9 tournament goals, and led the Selecao to titles at the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup and the 2016 Olympic Games (Gold Medal).

The last dance for Ney

Although the final result was not what they had hoped for, Neymar was able to say goodbye in style alongside the rest of his teammates. Ancelotti decided to include him in the 2026 FIFA World Cup squad, and despite having limited minutes on the pitch, he still managed to score a goal.

In what would ultimately be a 2-1 defeat against Norway and Brazil’s subsequent elimination, Ney converted a penalty in stoppage time to score his team’s consolation goal. In that way, during what were his final minutes on the pitch representing his national team, the forward made sure his last touch came with the ball in the back of the net.