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Former Brazil star confirms to GOAL that Samba can win its sixth World Cup title
Brazilian football legend Kaka has spoken about winning the World Cup at the age of 20 and the pressure on Vinicius Junior and Neymar, while explaining why the Seleção’s dream of winning a sixth star is still alive.
Kaka spent most of the 2002 World Cup watching other players. He was 20 years old, fresh out of Sao Paulo’s academy and just a year away from moving to Italy, a move that would define the course of his career.
But there, in South Korea and Japan, he was just a student. Almost a quarter of a century later, he is able to admit that his teachers were not bad at all.
Kaka said L-GOAL “They were Ronaldinho, Ronaldo and Rivaldo. I watched them every day. I wanted to see them train, play and play. They were my teachers.”
It was a fascinating group to learn from, to say the least. Three Ballon d’Or winners, three greats of the game and of course the 2002 World Cup. Kaka spent 50 days, literally, in their shadow, learning and absorbing it all. He played only 25 minutes in that tournament. But he remembers the feeling he had when he raised that glass. In a word, “unbelievable”.
After that, Brazilian football changed dramatically. Kaka, for better or for worse, was a witness to this development. These days, Kaka is considered one of the greats of modern football. But his Seleção career peaked early. He never reached those levels again. Now, 24 years after he won the trophy, Kaka is looking at a much-changed team that still carries the same burden he felt.
“The pressure… it’s unbelievable. It’s hard to explain. I can’t say compare to the pressure we are under. It’s something really special,” Kaka said.
“it’s weird”
Everyone remembers Kaka’s achievements at the club level. He won the Champions League twice with Milan. He also deservedly won the 2007 Ballon d’Or. He is one of ten players to have won the World Cup, Champions League and Ballon d’Or. There is no doubt that he is one of the best players to ever play football. But being Brazilian and playing this game means a lot more than just achievements with AC Milan, Real Madrid or Sao Paulo.
The expectation of someone from this country is to win the World Cup. Kaka achieved this at the age of 20 and never came close to reaching those levels again. He played his last tournament when he was twenty-eight years old. He played in 2006 and 2010, but Brazil was eliminated in the quarter-finals both times.
“It’s weird because it’s something you can’t train for. I can’t train to play in the World Cup. I can prepare myself in the best way, emotionally, physically, technically, etc., but I can’t train to be in a stadium full of fans, to play against Argentina, France or any other team,” Kaka said in an interview with GOAL. “You never know how you’re going to handle a situation,” he told GOAL.
“Every year I realize how difficult it is.”
But that doesn’t mean he’s ever lacked confidence. 2006 could be Brazil’s year again. If you look at the lineup, you’d be hard-pressed to find a more exciting front four than Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Adriano and Kaka.
He truly believed they would lift the trophy again thanks to the wealth of experience the team has.
“Yes, there were expectations to win again in 2006 and 2010. But it was really important for me to understand how hard it was to go and win the World Cup because I competed in 2002 and I was 20 years old. In my mind it was very easy to go and win the World Cup,” added Kaka.
But Brazil were unbalanced and crashed out in the quarter-finals. In 2010, he was sent off for a controversial second yellow card in the second game of the group stage. Once again, they failed to progress past the quarter-finals, although Kaka finished with three assists. But at the age of 28, Kaka played in his last World Cup. He made 10 more matches during his career. somewhat sacrificed as Brazil revamped their squad and encouraged the emergence of a new generation.
He said: “Every year I realize how difficult it is to play in the World Cup and win the World Cup and how important it is to have the World Cup on my record.”
“It is important that Neymar is in the team.”
The Brazil 2026 team faces the same pressure week after week. This year, the Seleção team is at a crossroads. This is a different team led by legendary coach Carlo Ancelotti. The team has not had much success of late, having last won a major title in 2019 when they won the South American Cup (an unprecedented failure by their standards). In 2024, Ronaldinho said the team was not worth watching.
Ancelotti is here to change that. The Italian is different from the former coaches of the Brazilian national teams. he is resolute in defense, hard to beat, has tournament experience. Kaka knows him well; He won the Ballon d’Or under his watch in Milan.
“With Carlo, I lived the best moments of my career, the period in which I performed excellently,” said Kaka.
Brazil enters the tournament with some injuries. Rodrigo, who was expected to play a key role, is out with a torn anterior cruciate ligament. Real Madrid’s main central defender Eder Militao will miss the tournament due to a muscle problem.
But the biggest controversy was around Neymar’s selection. There is no doubt that the attacking midfielder’s best days are over. His inclusion in the team was a subject of discussion. In the end, Ancelotti chose to include him in the 26-man roster. Kaka thinks this is definitely the right decision.
“It is very important for me that he is in the team. He can help on and off the field. He is really mature. This is his fourth World Cup. He already knows how things work, how to act, how to play, how to act, and for me it’s really great that he’s with us at the World Cup,” he said.
Neymar’s role is still unclear. Ancelotti admitted he would be an “important player” but refused to confirm his inclusion in the starting line-up for the Brazilian legend, who faces a race against time to regain fitness after picking up a muscle injury this week.
“Vinisus had a great season.”
Instead, expectations will fall on Vinicius Junior. The Real Madrid winger is a remarkable talent who almost won the Ballon d’Or in 2024, losing it to Manchester City’s Rodri. He has been heavily criticized recently, particularly for his apparent lack of chemistry with his co-star Kylian Mbappe.
Kaka emphasized that these doubts are not worthy, especially after the season in which the Brazilian scored 21 goals and 10 assists in 50 games.
Kaka said: “Vinicius had a really great season. The challenge is Real Madrid. If you don’t win, it will be a disappointing season. Vinicius scored a lot of goals and played great. But “Real” did not win any titles. So everyone says they failed.
The Whites have responded to a disappointing season with the prospective appointment of another of Kaka’s former coaches, Jose Mourinho. The Portuguese first took over as Real Madrid coach in 2010, and before leaving the club in 2013, he got into a public dispute with the management.
Kaká has been in all three of Mourinho’s years in charge but has never been a regular starter, despite Florentino Perez spending around $80 million on him last summer. Kaka now admits that it was a difficult time.
“The three years I spent with him in Madrid were an interesting period, a period full of challenges, but it was also beautiful. I developed a lot. He gave me a lot of good advice. I tried to do my best to play him in more moments and situations, but I wish him all the best.”
According to reports, Mourinho will take over after the World Cup. Kaka is excited to see how things turn out.
“In this second round in Madrid, he has a lot of Brazilians, Vinicius and other players. It will be really interesting to see Madrid with Mourinho next season,” explained Kaka.
“It is important for the development of football”
But those strained relations are now in the past. These days, Kaka can rest a little. He’s bringing this World Cup to the U.S. market through a partnership with DoorDash, a role he sees as another way to stay in touch with the tournament’s energy from a different perspective.
“Football has always been about the unforgettable moments that fans, teams and players create together, especially during the FIFA World Cup,” Kaka said. “I know what it’s like to feel that excitement as a player and a fan, so I know firsthand how much energy it takes to fully immerse yourself in a tournament. Partnering with DoorDash means supporting fans with the best support during the FIFA World Cup.”
He believes that having the World Cup in North America will only help the sport grow.
“It’s really important for the development of soccer in the United States. It’s really great to see players, coaches and different sporting cultures when hosting a tournament like the World Cup,” he added.
He is also aware of the changes taking place in sports. Kaka noted that the expected change in college football’s schedule to a year-round system could be important for player development in the United States.
“I saw the NCAA change some things over the next two years. They say the season will be not only half the year, but all year round. I think this is a really good improvement for player development in the US,” Kaka said.
That’s a pretty detailed review for someone who hasn’t played in the United States since 2017. But Kaka says he still keeps a close eye on the places that shaped his career.
He continued. “I like to follow most of the teams and countries where I have played. I know the country and the clubs better. I’m always following what’s going on and what they’re trying to do to develop soccer in the United States through GPS.”
He believes the MLS league, in which he finished his career with Orlando City SC, will continue to grow.
“MLS is still growing and we’re seeing these big names coming through. Now we have Leo (Messi) in MLS. This is really cool and it’s good to see how the league is growing,” he added.
In general, there is no more pressure. Kaká felt it as a player, carried it on his shoulders for Brazil and ultimately saw the opportunity slip away perhaps too quickly. Now he can enjoy the World Cup as a fan.
This Brazilian team is not a favorite. But he has a chance. That might be enough for Kaka.
“I really hope the time is right for Brazil to win the World Cup again. We hope that Brazil can win the sixth star in the USA,” said the former samba star.
