Neymar included in Brazil squad for World Cup qualifiers

Neymar. Pic/AFP

Brazil coach Fernando Diniz called up Neymar and Vinicius Junior on Friday for the opening matches of the Selecao's 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign, but left out Lucas Paqueta, who faces a sports-betting investigation in Britain.

Still smarting from their elimination by Croatia in the quarter-finals of the 2022 World Cup, five-time champions Brazil will launch their qualifying campaign against Bolivia on September 8 in Belem, in northern Brazil.

Meanwhile, following six seasons at Paris Saint-Germain, Neymar became the latest superstar soccer player to take the riches on offer from the Saudi Pro League, completing a move to Al Hilal on Tuesday.

The clubs reached an agreement on the transfer of the Brazil forward for a reported 90 million euros ($98 million), a record for a league that is now financially backed by the oil-rich state.

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Al Hilal, a record 18-time national champion, is one of four Saudi clubs effectively nationalized by the Public Investment Fund (PIF), the sovereign wealth fund that claims assets of about $700 billion.

The 31-year-old Neymar signed a two-year contract that is expected to earn him an annual salary of about $100 million. That would be around half of the reported salary being taken home by Cristiano Ronaldo, who plays for Al Nassr and whose move to Saudi in January sparked a slew of transfers to the kingdom by players like Karim Benzema, N'Golo Kante, Riyad Mahrez and Jordan Henderson.

"I have achieved a lot in Europe and enjoyed special times, but I have always wanted to be a global player and test myself with new challenges and opportunities in new places," Neymar said in the club's announcement. "I want to write new sporting history, and the Saudi Pro League has tremendous energy and quality players at the moment."

(With agency inputs)