Brazil

Early history (1914–1922)

It is generally believed that the inaugural game of the Brazil national football team was a 1914 match between a Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo select team and the English club Exeter City, held in Fluminense's stadium. Brazil won 2–0 with goals by Oswaldo Gomes and Osman, though it is claimed that the match was a 3–3 draw.

In contrast to its future success, the national team's early appearances were not brilliant. Other early matches played during that time include several friendly games against Argentina (being defeated 3–0), Chile (first in 1916) and Uruguay (first on 12 July 1916). However, led by the goalscoring abilities of Arthur Friedenreich, they were victorious at home in the South American Championships in 1919, repeating their victory, also at home, in 1922.

First World Cup and title drought (1930–1949)

In 1930, Brazil played in the first World Cup, held in Uruguay. The squad defeated Bolivia but lost to Yugoslavia, being eliminated from the competition at group stage. They lost in the first round to Spain in 1934 in Italy, but reached the semi-finals in France in 1938, being defeated 2–1 by eventual winners Italy. Brazil were the only South American team to participate in this competition.

The 1949 South American Championship held in Brazil ended a 27-year streak without official titles. The last one was in the 1922 South American Championship, also played on Brazilian soil.

The 1950 Maracanazo

After that, Brazil first achieved international prominence when it hosted the 1950 FIFA World Cup. The team went into the last game of the final round, against Uruguay at Estádio do Maracanã in Rio, needing only a draw to win the World Cup. Uruguay, however, won the match and the Cup in a game known as "the Maracanazo". The match led to a period of national mourning.

For the 1954 World Cup in Switzerland, Brazil was then almost completely renovated, with the team colours changed (to a new design by Aldyr Schlee) from all white to the yellow, blue and green of the national flag, to forget the Maracanazo, but still had a group of star players. Brazil reached the quarter-final, where they were beaten 4–2 by tournament favourites Hungary in one of the ugliest matches in football history, known as the "Battle of Berne".

Pelé and the First Golden Era (1958–1970)

For the 1958 World Cup, Brazil were drawn in a group with England, the USSR and Austria. They beat Austria 3–0 in their first match, then drew 0–0 with England. Before the match, coach Vicente Feola made three substitutions that were crucial for Brazil to defeat the Soviets: Zito, Garrincha and Pelé. From the kick-off, they kept up the pressure relentlessly, and after three minutes, which were later described as "the greatest three minutes in the history of football", Vavá gave Brazil the lead. They won the match by 2–0. Pelé scored the only goal of their quarter-final match against Wales, and they beat France 5–2 in the semi-final. Brazil then beat Sweden 5–2 in the final, winning their first World Cup and becoming the first nation to win a World Cup title outside of its own continent. Pelé described it tearfully as a nation coming of age.

In the 1962 World Cup, Brazil earned its second title with Garrincha as the star player, a mantle and responsibility laid upon him after the regular talisman, Pelé, was injured during the second group match against Czechoslovakia and unable to play for the rest of the tournament.

In the 1966 World Cup, Brazil had their worst performance in a World Cup. The 1966 tournament was remembered for its excessively physical play, and Pelé was one of the players most affected. Against Portugal, several violent tackles by the Portuguese defenders caused forward player Pelé to leave the match and the tournament. Brazil lost this match and was eliminated in the first round of the World Cup for the first time since 1934. They have not failed to reach the knockout stages of the competition since. Brazil became the second nation to be eliminated in the first round while holding the World Cup crown following Italy in 1950. After the 1998, 2002, 2010, 2014 and 2018 World Cups, France, Italy, Spain and Germany were also added to this list. After the tournament, Pelé declared that he did not wish to play in the World Cup again. Nonetheless, he returned in 1970.

Brazil won its third World Cup in Mexico in 1970. It fielded what has been widely considered the best World Cup football squad ever, led by Pelé in his last World Cup finals, captain Carlos Alberto Torres, Jairzinho, Tostão, Gérson and Rivellino. Even though Garrincha had retired, this team was still a force to be reckoned with. They won all six of their games—against Czechoslovakia, England and Romania during group play, and against Peru, Uruguay and Italy in the knockout rounds. Jairzinho was the second top scorer with seven goals, and is the only player to score in every match in a World Cup; Pelé finished with four goals. Brazil lifted the Jules Rimet trophy for the third time (the first nation to do so), which meant that they were allowed to keep it. A replacement was then commissioned, though it would be 24 years before Brazil won it again.

The dry spell (1974–1990)

After the international retirement of Pelé and other stars from the 1970 squad, Brazil was not able to overcome the Netherlands at the 1974 World Cup in West Germany, and finished in fourth place after losing the third place game to Poland.

In the second group stage of the 1978 World Cup, Brazil competed with tournament hosts Argentina for top spot and a place in the finals. In their last group match, Brazil defeated Poland 3–1 to go to the top of the group with a goal difference of +5. Argentina had a goal difference of +2, but in its last group match, it defeated Peru 6–0, and thus qualified for the final in a match accused of ultimately-unproven match fixing. Brazil subsequently beat Italy in the third place play-off, and were the only team to remain unbeaten in the tournament.

At the 1982 World Cup, held in Spain, Brazil were the tournament favorites, and easily moved through the early part of the draw, but a 3–2 defeat in Barcelona to Italy, in a classic World Cup match, eliminated them from the tournament in the match that they refer to as "Sarriá's Tragedy", referencing the stadium's name. The 1982 team, with a midfield of Sócrates, Zico, Falcão and Éder, is remembered as perhaps the greatest team never to win a World Cup.

Several players, including Sócrates and Zico, from 1982 returned to play at the 1986 World Cup in Mexico. Brazil, still a very good team and more disciplined defensively than four years earlier, met the Michel Platini-led France in the quarter-finals in a classic of Total Football. The game played to a 1–1 draw in regulation time, and after a goalless extra time, it all came down to a penalty shoot-out, where Brazil was defeated 4–3.

After a 40-year hiatus, Brazil was victorious in the 1989 Copa América, this being their fourth victory in four tournaments hosted in Brazil. This achievement ended Brazil's 19-year streak without a championship. The last one was in the 1970 World Cup.

At the 1990 World Cup in Italy, Brazil was coached by Sebastião Lazaroni, who had been the coach in the 1989 Copa América. With a defensive scheme, whose main symbol was midfielder Dunga, forward Careca and three centre-backs, the team lacked creativity but made it to the second round. Brazil was eliminated by Diego Maradona-led Argentina in the round of 16 in Turin, losing to their South American archrivals 1–0.

The Second Golden Era (1994–2002)

Brazil went 24 years without winning a World Cup or even participating in a final. Their struggles ended at the 1994 tournament in the United States, where a solid side headed by Romário and Bebeto in attack, captain Dunga in midfield, goalkeeper Cláudio Taffarel and defender Jorginho, won the World Cup for a then-record fourth time. Highlights of their campaign included a 1–0 victory over the United States in the round of 16 at Stanford University, a 3–2 win over the Netherlands in the quarter-finals in Dallas, and a 1–0 victory over Sweden in the semi-finals at Pasadena's Rose Bowl. This set up Brazil–Italy in the final in Pasadena. A game played in searing heat which ended as a goalless draw, with Italy's defence led by Franco Baresi keeping out Romário, penalty kicks loomed, and Brazil became champions with Roberto Baggio missing Italy's last penalty. Despite the triumph, the 1994 World Cup winning team is not held in the same high esteem in Brazil as their other World Cup winning teams. FourFourTwo magazine labelled the 1994 team "unloved" in Brazil due to their pragmatic, defensive style over the more typical Brazilian style of attacking flair.

Entering the 1998 World Cup as defending champions, Brazil finished runner-up. Having topped their group and won the next two rounds, Brazil beat the Netherlands on penalties in the semi-final following a 1–1 draw. Player of the tournament Ronaldo scored four goals and made three assists en route to the final. The build up to the final itself was overshadowed by Ronaldo suffering a convulsive fit only hours before kick off. The starting line up without Ronaldo was released to a shocked world media, but after pleading that he felt fine and requested to play, Ronaldo was reinstated by the coach, before giving a below par performance as France, led by Zidane won 3–0.

Fuelled by the "Three R's" (Ronaldo, Rivaldo and Ronaldinho), Brazil won its fifth championship at the 2002 World Cup, held in South Korea and Japan. Brazil beat all three opponents in group play in South Korea and topped the group. In Brazil's opening game against Turkey, in Ulsan, Rivaldo fell to the ground clutching his face after Turkey's Hakan Ünsal had kicked the ball at his legs. Rivaldo escaped suspension but was fined £5,180 for play-acting, and became the first player ever to be punished in FIFA's crackdown on diving. In their knockout round matches in Japan, Brazil defeated Belgium 2–0 in Kobe in the round of 16. Brazil defeated England 2–1 in the quarter-finals in Shizuoka, with the winning goal coming from an unexpected free-kick by Ronaldinho from 40 yards out. The semi-final was against Turkey in Saitama; Brazil won 1–0. The final was between Germany and Brazil in Yokohama, where Ronaldo scored two goals in Brazil's 2–0 triumph. Ronaldo also won the Golden Shoe as the tournament's leading scorer with 8 goals. Brazil's success saw them receive the Laureus World Sports Award for Team of the Year.

Brazil won the 2004 Copa América, their third win in four competitions since 1997. Brazil also won the 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup for the second time. Manager Carlos Alberto Parreira built his side through a 4–2–2–2 formation. Nicknamed the "Magic quartet", the attack was built around four players: Ronaldo, Adriano, Kaká and Ronaldinho.

World Cup drought (2006–present)

In the 2006 World Cup, Brazil won its first two games against Croatia (1–0) and Australia (2–0). In the final group game against Japan, Brazil won 4–1. Ronaldo scored twice and equalled the record for the most goals scored across all World Cups. In the round of 16, Brazil beat Ghana 3–0. Ronaldo's goal was his 15th in World Cup history, breaking the record. Brazil, however, was eliminated in the quarter-finals against France, losing 1–0 to a Thierry Henry goal.

Dunga was hired as Brazil's new team manager in 2006. Brazil then won the 2007 Copa América, where forward Robinho was awarded the Golden Boot and named the tournament's best player. Two years later, Brazil won the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup, defeating the U.S. 3–2 in the final, to seal their third Confederations Cup title. Kaká was named as the player of the tournament while striker Luís Fabiano won the top goalscorer award.

At the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, Brazil won their first two matches against North Korea (2–1) and the Ivory Coast (3–1), respectively. Their last match, against Portugal, ended in a 0–0 draw. They faced Chile in the round of 16, winning 3–0, although in the quarter-final they fell to the Netherlands 2–1.

In July 2010, Mano Menezes was named as Brazil's new coach. At the 2011 Copa América, Brazil lost against Paraguay and was eliminated in the quarter-finals. On 4 July 2012, due to a lack of competitive matches because the team had automatically qualified for the 2014 World Cup as tournament hosts, Brazil was ranked 11th in the FIFA ranking.

In November 2012, coach Mano Menezes was sacked and replaced by Luiz Felipe Scolari.

On 6 June 2013, Brazil was ranked 22nd in the FIFA ranking, their lowest-ever rank. Brazil entered the 2013 Confederations Cup with the objective of defending their title. In the final, Brazil faced Spain, winning 3–0 and sealing their fourth Confederations Cup title. Neymar was named player of the tournament and received the Golden Ball Award and the Adidas Bronze Shoe, and Júlio César won the Golden Glove Award for the best goalkeeper of the tournament.

2014 FIFA World Cup

In the opening match of the 2014 World Cup against Croatia, two goals from Neymar and one from Oscar saw the Seleção off to a winning start in their first World Cup on home soil in 64 years. The team then drew with Mexico, before confirming qualification to the knockout stage by defeating Cameroon 4–1. Brazil faced Chile in the round of 16, needing penalties to prevail to the next round following a 1–1 draw.

The team again faced South American opposition in the quarter-final, defeating Colombia 2–1. However, late in the match, Neymar was stretchered off after suffering a fractured vertebra, ruling him out for the remainder of the tournament.

The Seleção went on to lose 7–1 to the Germans – their biggest ever defeat at the World Cup and first home loss in a competitive match since 1975. The match has been nicknamed the Mineirazo, making reference to the nation's previous World Cup defeat on home soil, the Maracanazo against Uruguay in 1950, and the Estádio do Mineirão where the match took place. Brazil subsequently lost 3–0 to the Netherlands in the third-place play-off match. Following the tournament, Scolari announced his resignation.

Return of Dunga (2014–2016)

On 22 July 2014, Dunga was announced as the new manager of Brazil, returning to the position for the first time since the team's exit at the 2010 World Cup.

At the 2015 Copa América, Brazil finished first in Group C to advance to the knockout stages. However, they were eliminated in the next round, losing on penalties to Paraguay.

At the 2016 Copa América Centenario, Brazil began the tournament with a goalless draw with Ecuador before beating Haiti 7–1 in the next match. Needing only a draw to progress to the knockout stage of the tournament, Brazil suffered a controversial 1–0 loss to Peru, with Raúl Ruidíaz scoring in the 75th minute. This defeat saw Brazil eliminated from the tournament in the group stage for the first time since 1987.

Tite era (2016–2022)

On 14 June 2016, Tite replaced Dunga as manager of Brazil. At the 2018 FIFA World Cup, Brazil finished top of their group. After defeating Mexico in the round of 16, Brazil were eliminated in the quarter-finals by Belgium, losing 2–1. Despite elimination from the tournament, Tite remained as head coach ahead of the 2019 Copa América held on home soil. He would lead Brazil to their first Copa América title since 2007. After beating rivals Argentina 2–0 in the semi-finals, Brazil beat Peru in the final to win their ninth Copa América title.

At the 2022 World Cup, Brazil finished first in their group. The team then faced South Korea in the round of 16, winning with a 3-goal margin, and progressed to the quarter-finals where they eventually lost 4–2 on penalties to Croatia. Following their exit from the World Cup, Tite resigned as head coach.