Preview: Scotland vs Brazil - prediction, team news, lineups

Scotland will be aiming to make World Cup history when they lock horns with Brazil in their third and final Group C fixture at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami on Wednesday.

The two nations meet almost three decades on from their last World Cup clash in 1998 when the South American giants claimed a 2-1 victory en route to reaching the final.

Match preview

Five days after securing an important 1-0 victory over Haiti in their opening match at the 2026 World Cup, Scotland suffered defeat by the same scoreline against Morocco last Friday in a tight contest decided by a goal scored just 70 seconds in by Ismael Saibari.

Head coach Steve Clarke felt that Scotland were unfortunate not to be awarded at least one penalty during a spirited second-half performance. Nevertheless, the 62-year-old was pleased by how his players “showed we can compete against top-10 teams”, even though they failed to register a single shot on target.

Despite defeat, Scotland’s hopes of reaching the World Cup knockout rounds for the first time in their history remain alive, having previously suffered group-stage elimination in their previous eight appearances at the global tournament.

Securing their first ever win over the mighty Brazil 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. Scotland could also reach the knockouts if they lose to Brazil, though they will be keen to avoid a heavy defeat in Miami.

Scotland’s record against Brazil leaves a lot to be desired ahead of Wednesday’s contest, as they have lost six and drawn two of their previous eight international encounters, including three group-stage defeats at the World Cup between 1982 and 1998.

After being held to a 1-1 draw by Morocco in their opening Group C fixture, Brazil secured their first victory at the 2026 World Cup last Saturday by defeating Haiti 3-0, courtesy of a brace from Matheus Cunha and another first-half strike from Vinicius Junior.

That clinical display means the five-time world champions have now scored at least three goals in a World Cup match on 41 occasions in their history, five more than any other nation (Germany second on the list with 36).

Head coach Carlo Ancelotti hailed his team’s “complete” performance post-match, and his Selecao side are now in a strong position to secure top spot in Group C. To guarantee advancing as group winners, they simply need to match or better Morocco's result against Haiti when they take to the pitch against Scotland.

Ranked fifth in the world by FIFA and regarded as one of the favourites in our World Cup betting guide, Brazil have faced seven European nations across all competitions since the start of Qatar 2022, winning four, drawing one and losing two (including one on penalties). Most recently, they beat Croatia 3-1 in a friendly in April.

However, history serves as a warning, as Brazil’s last three defeats in the group stage at a World Cup have all been suffered on matchday three, including a surprise 1-0 loss against Cameroon in Qatar. As a result, the Selecao cannot afford to take anything for granted when they face a fired-up Scotland outfit on Wednesday.

Scotland World Cup form:

Scotland form (all competitions):

Brazil World Cup form:

Brazil form (all competitions):

Team News

Scotland trio Scott McKenna (calf), Aaron Hickey (unspecified) and Lewis Ferguson (fatigue) were all absent from training over the weekend, but they could all be back in contention to feature in some capacity against Brazil, the latter of whom is likely to continue in centre-midfield.

Clarke is expected to adopt a pragmatic approach against Brazil and may stick with a system that fluctuated from a 3-4-2-1 to a 4-4-1-1 formation against Morocco. Ben Gannon-Doak could be forced to settle for a place on the bench as a result, though.

John McGinn and Scott McTominay are both set to start in advanced midfield positions, while Che Adams will be hoping to retain his starting spot as the central striker ahead of Lawrence Shankland and Lyndon Dykes.

As for Brazil, Barcelona winger Raphinha has been ruled out with a hamstring injury sustained in the first half of the win over Haiti. Bournemouth's 19-year-old starlet Rayan is the most likely candidate to take his place on the right flank.

Ancelotti has confirmed that Neymar “will be available” to face Scotland after recovering from injury, but Brazil’s all-time record goalscorer is not expected to start, so Lucas Paqueta is set to continue in the number 10 role, supporting Vinicius Junior and Cunha in attack.

The rest of Brazil’s lineup could remain intact, with Danilo, Marquinhos, Gabriel Magalhaes and Douglas Santos all set to begin in defence behind midfield duo Casemiro and Bruno Guimaraes.

Scotland possible starting lineup:

Gunn; Patterson, Hendry, Hanley, Robertson, Tierney; Christie, Ferguson; McTominay, McGinn; Adams

Brazil possible starting lineup:

Alisson; Danilo, Marquinhos, Gabriel, Douglas Santos; Guimaraes, Casemiro; Rayan, Paqueta, Vinicius Jr; Cunha

We say: Scotland 1-3 Brazil

Even without the injured Raphinha, Brazil’s vast attacking depth should still have too much firepower for a gritty but vulnerable Scottish backline, as the Selecao look to march into the knockout rounds with maximum momentum.

While a spirited Scotland side are more than capable of breaching a Brazilian defence that looked susceptible against Morocco, we can envisage the South American giants navigating a bumpy ride by outscoring their European counterparts.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.