Dorival Junior has been dismissed as the head coach of the Brazilian national team, a move announced by the Confederation of Brazilian Football (CBF) following a crushing 4-1 defeat against Argentina in World Cup qualifying.
In an official statement, the CBF confirmed, “Dorival Junior is no longer in charge of the Brazilian national team. The management expresses gratitude for his efforts and wishes him success in his future endeavors.”
At 62 years old, Dorival had been at the helm since January 2024, taking over from interim coach Fernando Diniz. His short tenure has been marred by a disappointing qualifying campaign for the 2026 World Cup, where Brazil currently sits in fourth place in the South American qualifying standings, trailing 10 points behind leaders Argentina, who have secured their spot in the finals.
Additionally, Brazil finds themselves behind Ecuador and Uruguay in the race for one of the six automatic qualifying spots from South America. The team is set to face Ecuador away and Paraguay at home on June 4 and June 9, respectively.
The signs of trouble for Dorival became evident following the disappointing performance in Buenos Aires, where he took full responsibility, stating, “Nobody expected what we saw today, and the responsibility is entirely mine.”
Before leading the national team, Dorival achieved domestic success with Flamengo and Sao Paulo. His appointment had followed months of speculation regarding the potential hiring of Real Madrid’s Carlo Ancelotti.
Sources suggest that Ancelotti may once again be a prime candidate to take over the coaching position, alongside Portuguese coach Jorge Jesus, who is currently managing Al Hilal in Saudi Arabia.
