At 31 years old, Neymar can already be proud of having surpassed none other than Pelé in the Brazil shirt. The striker scored one of the winning goals against Bolivia, this Friday (8), at Mangueirão, for his debut in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, and isolated himself as the greatest scorer in the history of the Brazilian team.
The number 10 now has 78 goals in 125 games for the Seleção, with an average of 0.62 goals per game. Pelé scored 77 goals in 91 matches, with a much higher average of 0.84 goals per game.
It is worth mentioning that this count is that of FIFA, which only considers official clashes with national teams. The CBF has another criteria for selection, in which Pelé is still the team’s top scorer. The entity counts games against clubs and combinations, and the number of goals for the King of Football rises to 95, in 113 matches.
Top-5 top scorers in the National Team*
- Neymar – 78 goals in 125 games – Average of 0.62 goals/game
- Pelé – 77 goals in 91 games – Average of 0.84 goals/game
- Ronaldo – 62 goals in 98 games – Average of 0.63 goals/game
- Romário – 55 goals in 70 games – Average of 0.79 goals/game
- Zico – 48 goals in 71 games – Medái 0.68 goals/game
*FIFA accounts
A day before entering (even more) history, Neymar had already “predicted” the record. The striker held a press conference and stated that he hoped to be able to repay the affection he received in Belém with a historic goal at Mangueirão.
– It’s difficult to answer this question. What does this brand mean? It means a lot. For everyone here, Pelé is the King of football. Imagine surpassing the King. That’s it. Something you will never imagine in your life. It has everything to be a historic day, for the affection. And I do hope that this is the stage for the historic goal. The way they treated me and the way they welcomed me was very beautiful. I hope to be able to reciprocate, leaving Belém as the city where Pelé scored – said the striker, on the eve of the match.
Neymar is at home in the Seleção
In the arms of the people everywhere he visited in Belém, Neymar is back with the national team for the first time since being eliminated by Croatia in the 2022 World Cup. The striker says he feels at home wearing the Brazil shirt.
– Have you left the house yet? Missed? Me too. I missed it, I want to come back and I’m available. It’s great to be back. Receiving this affection was very rewarding, wonderful. It’s really difficult. I know that these fans want the ball in the net, for Brazil to be victorious – says the star.
https://twitter.com/eduardodeconto/status/1699894713598513433?s=20After facing Bolivia, the players have a day off on Saturday. They show up at 2:30 pm to board the flight to Lima, arriving at 7:45 pm. The team carries out two training sessions in the Peruvian capital before facing Peru. The game is scheduled for 11:30 pm (Brasília time), at the National Stadium, for the second round of the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers.
