Brazil are confirmed to make another coaching change as they look to improve themselves into a team that has realistic hopes of qualifying for the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers. The latest news is that Dorival Junior has been officially fired by the Brazilian Football Federation (CBF) after the Selecao lost embarrassingly 1-4 to Argentina in the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers in the Conmebol Zone.
The result was not only hard to swallow, but also put Brazil’s place at the 2026 tournament in jeopardy. With four games remaining, they were not guaranteed an automatic qualification spot. With that in mind, the Brazilian hierarchy decided to act by appointing a new head coach ahead of the next internationals in June this year.
This will be the Selecao’s fourth coaching change since December 2022, when long-serving coach Tite was replaced by two interim coaches, Ramon Menezes and Fernando Diniz.
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As reported by the Sporting News page , Portuguese coach Jorge Jesus is the favorite to become the next Selecao head coach to fill the vacant seat left by Dorival Junior.
According to reports circulating on Friday (28/3) local time, the CBF has made the decision to change the coach ahead of a meeting between Dorival and president Ednaldo Rodrigues. This news comes despite reports in recent days that talks have resumed with Carlo Ancelotti regarding the prospect of the Real Madrid boss taking over Brazil after the 2024/25 season ends.
Former Chelsea and Brazil defender Filipe Luis, now head coach of Flamengo, is also under consideration by the CBF. However, Jesus appears to be the strongest candidate to replace Dorival and is likely to take charge of his first match in June this year, when Brazil face Ecuador and Paraguay in World Cup qualifying.
Jorge Jesus is a very experienced coach who is currently managing Al Hilal in the Saudi Pro League since 2023. He led his team to win the Saudi Pro League, King’s Cup and Saudi Super Cup in 2024.
The 70-year-old coach led Al Hilal to a 34-game unbeaten run, winning 31 games and scoring 101 goals. They finished 14 points clear of their nearest challengers, Cristiano Ronaldo-led Al Nassr.
Alongside successful spells as coach of Benfica and Sporting Lisbon in his homeland, Jesus enjoyed a stellar year with Flamengo in 2019/20. They won five trophies, including the Copa Libertadores and Brasileirao in 2019, as Jesus oversaw 43 wins from 57 games in all competitions.
Now, Jesus could become only the third non-Brazilian in history to take charge of the Brazil national team. The last was Argentine Filpo Nunez, who took charge of one match in 1965 while managing Palmeiras.
Prior to that, Portuguese coach Joreca, had taken charge of two friendlies against Uruguay in 1944. Uruguayan Ramon Platero, Brazil’s first foreign coach, led them to victory in the 1925 South American Championship (the forerunner of the Copa America).
