Neymar Jr’s much hyped return to the Brazil national team did not last long. He started the round of 16 clash against Norway on the bench, mirroring his previous World Cup games. He entered the field in the 67th minute when the game was tied 0-0. But it was Norway’s Erling Haaland who made a late impact by scoring a sensational brace in the 79th and 90th minutes. Neymar converted a 100th-minute penalty to make it 2-1, but it turned out to be a consolation as Brazil marked their earliest World Cup exit since 1990.
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The record goalscorer for Brazil announced his retirement at the same venue where his international career started sixteen years ago. His retirement could start a domino effect in the Brazil national team following another disappointing major event.
“I tried, I tried. Now it’s over,” he told Brazilian publication Globo. “I started here, I finished here.”
16 years ago, a starry-eyed Neymar got his first cap for Brazil in a friendly against the United States at MetLife Stadium in New York and scored on his debut. In 2026, the superstar took this harsh call after an injury-plagued career, scoring his last international goal at the same venue at just 34.
🚨🚨 BREAKING: Neymar announces his RETIREMENT FROM INTERNATIONAL FOOTBALL. 👋🏼🇧🇷
“I tried. I tried. It started here at Met Life stadium and I finished here. It is now over”, Ney said after the game.
His story with the Brazilian national team is over. pic.twitter.com/vPIFflyJHq
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 5, 2026
Neymar Jr overtook Pele as Brazil’s all-time record goalscorer during the CONMEBOL World Cup qualifiers. By adding his 80th international goal on Sunday, he steered three goals clear of Pele and also became the first Brazilian man to score in four World Cups after Pele.
With 130 appearances, Neymar ranks second on Brazil’s all-time appearance list behind Cafu with 142 caps. Neymar was destined for greatness after an early Confederations Cup triumph in 2013 and the Summer Olympics gold medal in 2016. But constant knee and ankle injuries denied him a successful international career.
He missed out on Brazil’s triumphant 2019 Copa America campaign. Despite having regained fitness at the 2021 Copa America in the finals and was knocked out of the World Cup in the quarterfinals in 2022. A severe knee injury in the CONMEBOL qualifiers in 2023 kept him out of the game.
Following that setback, Neymar was away from the national team for 981 days. His selection for the World Cup became a topic of national interest. With four goals and two assists for Santos in Serie A this year, he caught the attention of Carlo Ancelotti, who took a gamble and picked Neymar for his leadership.
But the 34-year-old carried an injury from club soccer into the tournament and was ruled out of their initial group stage games. A 14-minute cameo against Scotland entertained his fans as he was left on the bench during their 2-1 triumph against Japan in the round of 32. Despite scoring in the round of 16, he was powerless to prevent a defeat.
It marks the end of an iconic international career of one of the best forwards in the modern era.
Brazilian coach Carlo Ancelotti revealed he will use this painful defeat as a learning experience ahead of the fresh start, indicating there could be more exits.
“That is football for you, that is sports. Sometimes you have to manage the sadness and bitter taste of a defeat. I am very used to that, but we are going to take this defeat and use it as fuel for the new cycle,” he said in a post-match conference.
