Brazil face Japan in World Cup knockout stage

Brazil and Japan will meet in the round of 32 of the FIFA World Cup 2026 on Monday, June 29, at Houston Stadium. Brazil coach Carlo Ancelotti, in his first major test, remained calm ahead of the match, describing Japan as one of the best teams in the world.

Brazil topped Group C after a 1-1 draw with Morocco, followed by 3-0 wins over Haiti and Scotland. Vinicius Junior scored four goals in the group stage, Matheus Cunha three, and Bruno Guimaraes contributed three assists.

Japan, considered dark horses, finished second in Group F with five points after draws against the Netherlands (2-2) and Sweden (1-1), and a 4-0 thrashing of Tunisia. Ayase Ueda and Daichi Kamada are their joint top scorers with two goals each.

This is only the second World Cup meeting between the teams; Brazil won 4-1 in 2006. Overall, Brazil have lost just once to Japan in 14 matches (11 wins, 2 draws). That sole defeat came in a friendly in October 2025, when Japan came from 2-0 down to win 3-2.

According to Opta's supercomputer, Brazil have a 58.3% chance of winning in regulation time, Japan 18.1%, and a 23.6% probability of extra time or penalties.

The winner will face Norway or Ivory Coast in the round of 16.

Brazil will be without Raphinha due to a hamstring injury, while Neymar is available after appearing as a substitute in the last group game. Japan's Takefusa Kubo is out with a knee injury.

Predicted lineups: Brazil (4-3-3): Alisson; Danilo, Marquinhos, Gabriel, Santos; Guimaraes, Casemiro, Paqueta; Rayan, Cunha, Vinicius Jr. Japan (3-4-2-1): Suzuki; Tomiyasu, Taniguchi, Ito; Doan, Sano, Tanaka, Nakamura; Ito, Kamada; Ueda.