Getty ImagesScotland will be aiming to make history and qualify for the knockout stages of a major tournament for the first time in their mammoth clash against Brazil on Wednesday night.
Steve Clarke’s men take on the five-time world champions in the Miami heat – and at least one point would almost certainly guarantee progress into the last 32.
When captain Andy Robertson leads the team out onto the pitch just before 11pm, Scotland, who have failed to beat the South Americans at the 1974, 1982, 1990 and 1998 finals, will bid to make qualification history.
A win would guarantee a top-two finish in Group C, while a draw would most likely seal a top-three finish and progress to the last 32.
However, even a defeat could be enough, depending on the outcome of results in other groups.
Ahead of the match, Scottish football fans are set to gather at venues across the country, while thousands of Tartan Army faithful have made the journey to Florida for what is set to be a nervy night.
Group C
| Team | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Form |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brazil | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | +3 | 4 | D W |
| Morocco | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | +1 | 4 | D W |
| Scotland | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | W L |
| Haiti | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | -4 | 0 | L L |
Updated 20 Jun 2026, 17:57
Pre-match thoughts
Steve Clarke has said he will disregard his “decades-long love” of Brazil as he faces them for the first time.
The Scotland boss admitted he has been an admirer of the five-time World Cup winners since the side, which included Pelé won the trophy in Mexico in 1970.
SNS Group“For me, as a coach, to be involved in a World Cup match against Brazil, one of the most iconic teams in the world…first memories of the World Cup for me were probably the 1970 Brazil team”, he said.
“They were absolutely fantastic.
“They were great to see for a young boy growing up. And you grow up with that love of Brazil. But tomorrow night, we have to not love Brazil and love Scotland more.
“I think the characteristics of Brazil as a national team is they have to attack. These are the characteristics that people expect from a Brazil team.”
Brazil coach Carlo Ancelotti has warned his players to beware of Scotland’s high-quality team of “fighters” ahead of the clash.
The Italian is taking nothing for granted on Wednesday evening and said: “It will be a difficult game. Scotland has quality, they are fighters, they are well organised.
“They have good players, (Scott) McTominay, (John) McGinn, that are experienced players. Easy games at the World Cup were finished a long time ago. We are ready to play a difficult game.”
Team news
The Scotland camp announced that right-back Aaron Hickey was the only player unavailable.
The Brentford right-back played 75 minutes off the opening 1-0 win over Haiti but did not feature in the defeat by Morocco on Friday at the Boston Stadium.
SNS GroupCentre-back Scott McKenna has been managing a calf complaint but is expected to return, while Lewis Ferguson, who did not take part in Scotland’s group training on Sunday, is also expected to be fit.
One player who will miss out for Brazil is Barcelona forward Raphinha, who sustained a hamstring injury in Brazil’s 3-0 win over Haiti.
However, there is an expectation that Neymar could return for Brazil for the first time in over two-and-a-half years.
Scotland may be the first outing of this World Cup for the PSG superstar, who has not featured so far at the finals due to a calf problem.
Asked about how he was shaping up, Ancelotti said: “He is available, he trained very well this week, he is fit and able and ready to play. We are very happy that he is back, he is a high-quality player.”
“He can play half the time or the whole 90 minutes. He is very well, he worked very, hard so he is ready.”
“Obviously, his qualities are without question,” said Clarke of Neymar. “He’s one of the superstars of the modern era. He always has injury issues coming into the tournament.
“And we can expect a very dangerous opponent, but I could go on about there’s always so many dangerous opponents and Neymar is just another dangerous opponent.”
Scotland set up
Scotland started with two strikers in a 4-4-2 formation in the opening victory against Haiti, with Lawrence Shankland and Che Adams up top.
However, Clarke tweaked it against Morocco with a lone striker in Adams, with Lyndon Dykes and Ross Stewart introduced in the second half.
It is not known yet who he will choose to spearhead his side against the Brazilians as he tries to marry pragmatism with a threat to goal.
Scotland have registered just two shots on goal in their first two games, both in the first half against Haiti, where midfielder John McGinn scored the only goal of the game.
Surprisingly, against Morocco, left-back Kieran Tierney started wide in midfield, a move seen as eliminating the threat from Hakimi.
Winger Ben Gannon-Doak, who has appeared as a constant threat on the pitch, could be brought back in to start wide on the right, with Clarke reverting to a back four.
Permutations
The easiest way to guarantee qualification from the group is, of course, for Scotland to beat Brazil.
However, Scotland have not beaten Brazil in 10 attempts and nurse a head-to-head record of eight losses and two draws.
In four World Cup group-stage meetings, the Scots have taken one point – in the goalless draw in 1974. Brazil won 4-1 in 1982, 1-0 in 1990 and 2-1 in 1998. Clarke’s side could not pick a better time to rectify that winless record.
Scotland would have hoped to avoid defeat against Morocco, but a goal inside two minutes left the Scots on three points, and Morocco on four, the same as Brazil.
A negative goal difference now looks certain, unless Steve Clarke’s men can play out a draw with Carlo Ancelotti’s side. In that scenario, Scotland would be all but guaranteed to qualify.
Brazil saw off Haiti by three goals to nil, with the Haitians becoming the first team to be eliminated from the tournament.
With eight of the best third-placed teams going through, Scotland still have a chance to get into the next round.
Only Sweden is ahead of Scotland in those rankings, and the Swedes have the same goal difference of zero but have scored more goals.
Paraguay are also on three points after two games, but have a worse goal difference than Scotland.
All but four of the 12 teams have played two games, with Portugal, Panama, Senegal and Jordan still to play. The latter three are all on zero points, and Portugal are on one.
That means as it stands on Monday morning, Scotland looks in a relatively healthy position, but things can quickly change.
By the time we reach kick-off on Wednesday night, the need for keeping as many goals out as possible could be even greater.
Should Brazil beat Scotland by a significant margin, the chances of qualification become fairly slim.
And the final picture may not be clear until Sunday, when all the group game fixtures have been completed.
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