Ancelotti’s first Brazil win clinches 2026 World Cup berth

Brazil qualified for the 2026 World Cup with a 1-0 win over Paraguay on Tuesday night in Sao Paulo.

The win was the first for new manager Carlo Ancelotti, whose first match in charge was a 0-0 draw with Ecuador on Thursday.

Real Madrid striker Vinícius Júnior scored the game’s only goal in the second half.

“I’m very happy with today’s result. We needed to win at home for our fans too and qualify for the World Cup, which was our goal,” Vinicius said.

“Now [Ancelotti] will have more time to work, to see what he can improve. Today wasn’t one of our best games, but the important thing in qualifying is to win and prepare well for the World Cup.”

The result puts Brazil on 25 points with only two rounds of games remaining, meaning the five-time World Cup winners are assured of one of CONMEBOL’s six automatic berths for the tournament in the United States, Mexico and Canada next year.

Brazil have never failed to qualify for a World Cup in the history of the tournament. Defending champions Argentina and Ecuador are the only other CONMEBOL teams to have secured a spot at the World Cup from South America’s 18-game qualifying schedule.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this story.