Brazil's post-World Cup rebuild begins in the unlikely setting of Townsville, a city better known for rugby league than joga bonito, as the Seleção face Australia in a friendly on Friday.
The five-time world champions landed in Townsville on Thursday, with players like Vinícius Júnior and Raphinha in a city that has never hosted an A international for the Socceroos. The local A-League representative, North Queensland Fury, collapsed in 2011, and the region's sporting focus is on rugby league, with almost 80 junior sides from around Queensland jetting in for the Gordon Tallis Cup.
Ancelotti's New Era
Carlo Ancelotti is beginning his first full World Cup cycle as Brazil boss, staying a 10-minute walk from the Mad Cow Tavern on Flinders Street. He faces a Socceroos side led by Tony Popovic, a former guest at AC Milan and Bayern Munich during Ancelotti's tenure.
“We are good friends,” Ancelotti said. “Sometimes we have the possibility to meet to talk about football. We spent time together when I was in Milan, we spent time together in Brisbane two nights ago. It’s a pleasure to talk about football [with Popovic]. He’s doing a fantastic job here. A really passionate manager. I hope the best for him. I think the World Cup he had was a really good World Cup. The team showed strong quality, a compact team.”
Queensland's Major Events Strategy
Brazil's tour is part of Queensland's major events strategy, with the state government working with promoters and the CBF to bring the team to “the events capital of the north”. The state's minister for tourism, Andrew Powell, declared in a media release that the “Crisafulli government went out and secured” the games.
Hotels across Townsville are booked out, and a street party on Friday afternoon will feature Brazilian jiu-jitsu and capoeira demonstrations, a Brazilian band, and line dancing. Brazil last played in Australia in 2017, facing the Socceroos and Argentina.
A New Generation for 2030
Brazil's last-16 defeat to Norway at the World Cup marked their earliest elimination since Italia 90. By 2030, it will have been 28 years since their 2002 triumph, their longest drought since first winning in 1958. Ancelotti is tasked with finding a new generation of players for the World Cup and Copa America.
“It’s difficult to say it’s a friendly. For Brazil, it will never be a friendly game. It will be an important game. A new season, we have a goal to find new players, to find a new generation of players for the World Cup and Copa America. And we start in the game tomorrow.”
