Brazil’s Raphinha is sidelined with a right hamstring injury, the Brazilian Football Confederation confirmed Saturday, leaving the Barcelona forward’s 2026 FIFA World Cup return timeline officially uncertain.
The timing couldn’t be worse. Brazil already carries one of the tournament’s longest injury lists heading into its final Group C match against Scotland on June 24 in Miami Gardens â and now its most dynamic attacking threat is on the treatment table.
Sports medicine physician Dr. Jesse Morse assessed the situation in a social media post, describing it as a likely reinjury of Raphinha’s right hamstring, a significant concern given that the 29-year-old Barcelona forward had dealt with the right hamstring problem as recently as March 2026.
“Unless it’s super mild, he’s likely to miss at least two to three weeks,” Morse posted.
Football insider Fabrizio Romano confirmed the prognosis in a post of his own Saturday. Raphinha will miss the Scotland match, Romano confirmed, adding that intensive treatment is underway, and the Brazil star’s stated target is a return during the tournament’s later stages.
With a two- to three-week absence as projected by Dr. Morse, Raphinha is on track to miss not only the Scotland group finale June 24 but also Brazil’s Round of 32 opener in Houston on June 29, which would pit Brazil as Group C winner against the Group F runner-up. Japan is the projected opponent, according to ESPN‘s World Cup bracket.
The Round of 16 kicks off July 4-7, and that window is his most realistic return target. However, should Brazil defeat Japan, its Round of 16 match would be set for Sunday, July 5, at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, a date just outside the two-week window but still within three weeks, making Raphinha’s return highly uncertain for that match, with a projected opponent of either Ivory Coast or Norway based on current standings positions.
Raphinha Hamstring Injury: What Brazil Says
Raphinha was substituted off in the 40th minute of Brazil’s 3-0 win over Haiti on June 19 after appearing to feel something in his upper right leg. Tests the following day confirmed the diagnosis.
“The player will follow an intensive treatment protocol, monitored by the Brazilian National Team’s medical team, aiming for his recovery and return to activities as quickly as possible,” the CBF said in an official statement, according to ESPN.
The CBF has not ruled Raphinha out of the tournament. He is staying in the United States with the squad while undergoing intensive treatment, and the hope is that he returns for the knockout rounds, most likely the quarterfinals, assuming Brazil survives until then without him.
GettyBrazil’s superstar forward Neymar still has no definitive return date from his injury absence.
Will Neymar Return to World Cup First?
Raphinha’s setback lands with Brazil still waiting on Neymar. The 34-year-old has been out since May 17, when he sustained a grade 2 muscle strain in his right calf during a Brazilian league match for Santos against Coritiba.
The former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain star was sidelined for Brazil’s 1-1 draw with Morocco and the win over Haiti.
The picture is cautiously optimistic. Neymar has returned to individual fieldwork, briefly joining full team training to considerable fanfare. “Did you miss me?” he joked with teammates, according to Yahoo Sports. Brazil’s medical staff is taking no risks, sitting him out of remaining group fixtures to ensure he is fully fit when it matters most.
Ancelotti, asked in May whether he had regrets about including an injured Neymar in the squad, waved off the hypothetical.
“If my grandad had wheels, he’d be a car,” the iconic coach said, as quoted by ESPN.
Brazil remains the heavy Group C favorite, but depth has become a genuine issue. In addition to missing Raphinha and Neymar, Rodrygo is out with a knee injury, and Estêvão was lost to a hamstring tear in April.
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