The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition between the senior men's national teams of the members of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament has been held every four years since the inaugural tournament in 1930, with the exception of 1942 and 1946 due to the Second World War. The reigning champions are Argentina, who won their third title at the 2022 tournament.
Edson Arantes do Nascimento, better known by his nickname Pelé, was a Brazilian professional footballer who played as a forward. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, he was among the most successful and popular sports figures of the 20th century. In 1999, he was named Athlete of the Century by the International Olympic Committee and was included in the Time list of the 100 most important people of the 20th century. In 2000, Pelé was voted World Player of the Century by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics (IFFHS) and was one of the two joint winners of the FIFA Player of the Century. His 1,279 goals in 1,363 games, which includes friendlies, is recognised as a Guinness World Record.
Ronaldo Luís Nazário de Lima, known as Ronaldo or Ronaldo Nazário, is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as a striker. He is the owner of Brasileiro Série A club Cruzeiro and owner and president of Segunda Division club Real Valladolid. Nicknamed O Fenômeno and R9, he is considered one of the greatest players of all time. As a multi-functional striker who brought a new dimension to the position, Ronaldo has been an influence for a generation of strikers that have followed. His individual accolades include being named FIFA World Player of the Year three times and winning two Ballon d'Or awards.
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The Brazil national football team, nicknamed Seleção Canarinha, represents Brazil in men's international football and is administered by the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF), the governing body for football in Brazil. They have been a member of FIFA since 1923 and a member of CONMEBOL since 1916.
Clube de Regatas do Flamengo, more commonly referred to as simply Flamengo, is a Brazilian sports club based in Rio de Janeiro, in the neighborhood of Gávea, best known for their professional football team that plays in Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, as well as Campeonato Carioca. They are one of two clubs to have never been relegated from the top division, the other being São Paulo.
Santos Futebol Clube, commonly known simply as Santos or Santos FC, is a Brazilian sports club based in Vila Belmiro, a bairro in the city of Santos. It is also the team with the most goals in football history. It plays in the Paulistão, the State of São Paulo's premier state league, as well as the Brasileirão Série B, the second tier of the Brazilian football league system, after getting relegated in the 2023 season for the first time in the club's history.
Fluminense Football Club, known as Fluminense, or more commonly as Flu, is a Brazilian sports club best known for its professional football team that competes in the Campeonato Brasileiro Serie A, the first tier of Brazilian football, and the Carioca Championship, the state league of Rio de Janeiro. The club is based in the neighbourhood of Laranjeiras since its foundation in 1902. Fluminense is the oldest football club in Rio de Janeiro.
The CONMEBOL Copa América, known until 1975 as the South American Football Championship, is the top men's football tournament contested among national teams from South America. It is the oldest still-running continental football competition, as well as the third most watched in the world. The competition determines the champions of South America. Since the 1990s, teams from North America and Asia have also been invited to compete.
Ronaldo de Assis Moreira, commonly known as Ronaldinho Gaúcho or simply Ronaldinho, is a Brazilian retired professional footballer who played mostly as an attacking midfielder, but was also deployed as a winger. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, he won two FIFA World Player of the Year awards and a Ballon d'Or. He is the only player ever to have won a World Cup, a Copa América, a Confederations Cup, a Champions League, a Copa Libertadores and a Ballon d'Or. A global icon of the sport, Ronaldinho was renowned for his technical skills, creativity, dribbling ability and accuracy from free-kicks, his use of tricks, feints, no-look passes and overhead kicks, as well as his ability to score and create goals, all prominent characteristics of his early-age background playing futsal. He is known by the nickname "O Bruxo".
Romário de Souza Faria, known simply as Romário, is a Brazilian politician and a former professional footballer. A prolific striker renowned for his clinical finishing, he scored over 700 goals and is one of the few players to score at least 100 goals for three clubs. He is considered one of the greatest players of all time. Romário starred for Brazil in their 1994 FIFA World Cup triumph, receiving the Golden Ball as player of the tournament. He was named FIFA World Player of the Year the same year. He came fifth in the FIFA Player of the Century internet poll in 1999, was elected to the FIFA World Cup Dream Team in 2002, and was named in the FIFA 100 list of the world's greatest living players in 2004.
Football is the most popular sport in Brazil and a prominent part of the country's national identity. The Brazil national football team has won the FIFA World Cup five times, the most of any team, in 1958, 1962, 1970, 1994 and 2002. Brazil and Germany are the only teams to succeed in qualifying for all the World Cups for which they entered the qualifiers; Brazil is the only team to participate in every World Cup competition ever held. Brazil has also won an Olympic gold medal, at the 2016 Summer Olympics held in Rio de Janeiro and at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.
The Brazilian Football Confederation is the governing body of football in Brazil. It was founded on Monday, 8 June 1914, as Federação Brasileira de Sports, and renamed Confederação Brasileira de Desportos in 1916. The football confederation, as known today, separated from other sports associations on 24 September 1979. Between 1914 and 1979 it was the governing body, or at least the international reference, for other Olympic sports, such as tennis, athletics, handball, swimming and waterpolo. It currently has the most wins on FIFA world cups, with a total of five.
The Brazil women's national football team represents Brazil in international women's football and is run by the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF). It has participated in eight editions of the FIFA Women's World Cup, finishing as runner-up in 2007, and nine editions of the Copa América Femenina.
The Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, commonly referred to as the Brasileirão, and also known as Brasileirão Assaí due to sponsorship with Assaí Atacadista, is a Brazilian professional league for men's football clubs. At the top of the Brazilian football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the Campeonato Brasileiro Série B. In 2021, the competition was chosen by the IFFHS as the strongest national league in South America as well as the strongest in the world.
The Campeonato Brasileiro Série B is the second tier of the Brazilian football league system. Although not having been played annually since its founding in 1971, the competition format has changed almost every season. Since 2006 it has been contested by 20 teams in a double round-robin format with the top four teams being promoted to the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A group and the bottom four teams being relegated to the Campeonato Brasileiro Série C group.
Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior, known as Neymar Júnior or mononymously as Neymar, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Saudi Pro League club Al Hilal and the Brazil national team. A technically gifted player, Neymar is a prolific goalscorer and playmaker renowned for his flamboyant style of play, passing abilities and two-footedness. He finished third for the FIFA Ballon d'Or in 2015 and 2017 and is a recipient of the FIFA Puskás Award. Regarded as the best Brazilian player of his generation, Neymar has scored at least 100 goals for three different clubs, making him one of the few players to achieve this feat.
Sócrates Brasileiro Sampaio de Souza Vieira e Oliveira, simply known as Sócrates, was a Brazilian footballer who played as a midfielder. His medical degree and his political awareness, combined with style and quality of his play, earned him the nickname "Doctor Socrates". Easily recognizable for his beard and headband, Sócrates became the "symbol of cool for a whole generation of football supporters". In 1983, he was named South American Footballer of the Year. In 2004, he was named by Pelé in the FIFA 100 list of the world's greatest living players.
Richarlison de Andrade, known mononymously as Richarlison, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur and the Brazil national team.
Ronaldo is a Portuguese given name equivalent to the English Ronald. It became a common name in all Portuguese-speaking countries, being also prevalent in Italy and Spanish-speaking countries.
