World Cup: When will Brazil announce their final squad?

The World Cup is drawing ever closer and Brazil's national team already has its schedule mapped out for the period leading up to the tournament. Following the friendlies against France and Croatia during the March international break, Carlo Ancelotti is now turning his attention to the 26 names he will bring together for the final pre-tournament camp, beginning in May.

Here, Sports Mole takes a look at the final adjustments being made by the Italian manager ahead of naming his World Cup squad.

When will the World Cup squad be announced?

After the March friendlies, Carlo Ancelotti had around a month to continue assessing players before defining Brazil's final list for the World Cup. The first key date on the calendar will be May 11, when the coaching staff will send FIFA a preliminary list of up to 55 names.

From that list, the definitive call-ups will be selected. The remaining players will stay on standby in case of injuries or unforeseen issues before the start of the tournament.

The official and final Brazil squad announcement will take place on May 18, in Rio de Janeiro, at CBF's headquarters. On the day, Ancelotti will name the 26 players who will represent Brazil at the World Cup. The size of the squad remains in place following the change introduced by FIFA at the 2022 World Cup.

After the announcement, the players will have nine days to report to Granja Comary, Brazil's national team training centre in Teresopolis, Rio de Janeiro.

The squad will gather on May 27 to begin their preparation period and training sessions.

On the final day of the month, the side managed by Ancelotti will play a friendly against Panama at the Maracana, in a match that will mark their farewell to Brazilian supporters before travelling to the World Cup.

On June 1, the delegation will fly to the United States, one of the host nations of the tournament and Brazil's base during the group stage. Once on North American soil, Brazil will continue training and will play their final warm-up friendly on June 6, against Egypt, in Cleveland.

That will be the last test before Brazil's tournament opener against Morocco in New Jersey. Brazil are in Group C, alongside Scotland and Haiti, in addition to the Moroccans.

What are Ancelotti's final dilemmas before the World Cup?

Carlo Ancelotti already has the bulk of the names locked in for Brazil's final list and used the two most recent friendlies, against France and Croatia, to gain final clarity before the squad announcement. It is no coincidence that Leo Pereira and Bremer, both called up for the first time by Ancelotti, are expected to be part of the World Cup squad.

Ancelotti's main dilemmas lie in midfield and attack. The manager is still searching for an out-and-out centre-forward, with the choice falling between Igor Thiago, Endrick and Richarlison for the position.

Neymar, as a false nine, is an outside contender, given that he was not called up in any of the previous squads and is recovering from knee surgery.

Ancelotti must also find solutions to cover those ruled out. Rodrygo, who underwent knee ligament surgery, is already out; Estevao, with a grade four muscle injury, is racing against time to be available to Ancelotti and will travel to Brazil to seek conservative treatment.

Finally, Eder Militao has suffered another injury at Real Madrid and will be sidelined until May.