Scotland 0-3 Brazil
Brazil are through to the World Cup 2026 Round of 32 after taking the top spot in Group C, following their 3-0 win against Scotland on Wednesday at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, Florida. And for the second game in a row, it was the dynamic duo of Vinicius Jr. and Matheus Cunha who produced the World Cup 2026 highlights.
Vinicius Jr. scored a first-half brace, while Cunha scored once in the second half. The Real Madrid winger should’ve finished with a hat-trick if one of his early attempts had not been ruled out. By doing so, they became the joint top scorers for the Samba Boys at three goals apiece. Brazil also saw the return of Neymar, who was emotional when he came on the pitch in the 76th minute.
With the loss, Scotland finished as the third seed in the group, and Steve Clarke’s men face a nervous wait in the next few days.
Highlights of the game
Scotland were already behind early against Brazil, as Steve Clarke’s men played themselves into trouble at their rearguard. During the seventh minute, Scott McKenna fumbled the ball when Rayan closed down on him, and the Bournemouth youngster teed up Vinicius Jr., who rounded goalie Angus Gunn and put the ball into an empty net.
Another Scotland mistake looked to have gifted Vinicius Jr. his brace after Jack Hendry had his pocket picked on the edge of the box. But the VAR deemed the 25-year-old had fouled the defender, so the Tartan Army dodged a bullet.
Brazil turned up the pressure at the end of the first half, which paid off. After Lewis Ferguson cleared Matheus Cunha’s effort off the line, an unmarked Vinicius Jr. rose to head in Bruno Guimaraes’ cross. Gunn then saved another shot from Rayan on the stroke of halftime.
The Tartan Army had the first chance after the break, as Scott McTominay’s header went straight at Alisson. A few minutes later, Brazil were on the scoresheet again. After Vinicius Jr. saw his chance for a hat-trick smothered by Gunn, Matheus Cunha coolly slotted past the goalkeeper on the hour mark after Guimaraes teed the Manchester United forward up.
Scotland almost pulled back what could’ve been a vital consolation in the 95th minute, but McTominay’s effort was caught by Alisson again.
Key statistics
Vinicius Jr. became the fifth Brazilian player to score in all three group-stage matches of a single World Cup campaign, joining Jairzinho (1970), Romario (1994), Ronaldo Nazario, and Rivaldo (both in 2002). Brazil went on to win the trophy on each of those three previous occasions.
Three of Vinicius Jr.’s five goals at the World Cup have been openers for the Samba Boys, and the Real Madrid forward has now been involved in more than half of Brazil’s goals across the last two finals, contributing to eight of their 15 goals (five goals, three assists).
Bruno Guimaraes also deserves a shoutout for providing two assists in a match for the first time for Brazil, while creating three chances overall. Only Rayan and Lucas Paqueta created more chances for Carlo Ancelotti’s side (four each). Brazil’s dominant first half saw them attempt 11 shots – their highest tally before halftime in a World Cup match since 2018 (11 vs. Mexico in the Round of 16).
For Scotland, the third-place table could come down to goal difference, and this result was particularly damaging. While they didn’t shy away from trying to keep up with Brazil, launching 14 shots, the quality of their chances was reflected in their 1.13 expected goals (xG). In stark contrast, the Samba Boys had a whopping 4.46 xG.
What’s next?
With Brazil and Morocco wrapping up their group-stage campaigns with victories over Scotland and Haiti, they have secured their places in the Round of 32 as the first and second seeds, respectively. On the other hand, Scotland will finish third, and Haiti will finish last.
As of this writing, Scotland are poised to be one of the Top 8 third-placed teams, alongside Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sweden, Croatia, Algeria, Paraguay, Cape Verde, and Belgium. However, that can change in the next few days since not every nation has finished their group-stage campaigns. The Tartan Army don’t have full control of their fate, per the SBOTOP World Cup 2026 odds.
Brazil will face the runner-up of Group F, while Morocco will take on the winner of Group F. Both countries will be watching the Japan-Sweden and Tunisia-Netherlands matches closely. Tunisia have already been eliminated from the tournament after back-to-back losses in their first two games.
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