Brazil-Morocco Starting XIs Announced

In the 2026 FIFA World Cup Group C opening match, Brazil and Morocco face each other at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. The match will start at 01:00 Turkey time on Sunday night, June 14. Local times: US ET 18:00 (Saturday, June 13), BST 23:00, CEST 00:00. Brazil under Carlo Ancelotti's management and Morocco under Mohamed Ouahbi's management chose the 4-2-3-1 formation. The squad preferred in Ancelotti's first World Cup match as head coach contained a few surprises; particularly noteworthy was the preference of Igor Thiago over Matheus Cunha in the forward line. While Neymar (calf injury) and Wesley França (muscle injury) are absent from Brazil's squad, Nayef Aguerd (groin) and Abde Ezzalzouli (knee) stayed out of Morocco.

Brazil XI (4-2-3-1)

Goalkeeper: Alisson
Defence: Roger Ibanez - Marquinhos (C) - Gabriel - Douglas Santos
Midfield: Casemiro - Bruno Guimaraes
Attack line: Vinicius Junior - Lucas Paqueta - Raphinha
Forward: Igor Thiago

Morocco XI (4-2-3-1)

Goalkeeper: Bono
Defence: Achraf Hakimi (C) - Issa Diop - Chadi Riad - Noussair Mazraoui
Midfield: Abdellah Bouaddi - Nabil El Aynaoui
Attack line: Brahim Diaz - Azzedine Ounahi - Bilal El Khannouss
Forward: Ilias Saibari

Ancelotti preferred Roger Ibanez instead of Danilo at right-back and Douglas Santos instead of Alex Sandro at left-back. On the substitute bench are important names like Matheus Cunha (9), Bremer (14), Endrick (19) and Danilo (13). On the Morocco side, Sofyan Amrabat (8) is among the substitutes; head coach Ouahbi preferred Bouaddi in midfield. Those watching the match will also witness the tactical identity of Ancelotti's first World Cup adventure with the Brazil national team.

Image: bbc.co.uk