Vinicius rescues Brazil in draw with Morocco at 2026 FIFA World Cup

Brazil settled for a 1-1 draw against Morocco in their opening match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Friday, with Vinicius Junior scoring a crucial equalizer after the record five-time champions were outplayed for long stretches at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

North African football giants Morocco took a deserved lead through Ismael Saibari and threatened to hand Brazil a defeat in Group C before Real Madrid star Vinicius produced a moment of individual brilliance to rescue a point for Carlo Ancelotti's side.

The Atlas Lions made the brighter start and controlled much of the first half through an energetic midfield led by 18-year-old Ayyoub Bouaddi, who continued to justify the growing excitement surrounding his international future.

Brazil struggled to gain control in midfield as Casemiro and Bruno Guimaraes found it difficult to cope with Morocco's intensity and movement. Morocco repeatedly targeted Brazil's right flank, where central defender Roger Ibanez had been deployed at right-back.

The breakthrough arrived after a moment of inspiration from Brahim Diaz. The Morocco playmaker collected the ball deep inside his own half before delivering a perfectly weighted pass for Saibari, who raced through and calmly lifted his finish over goalkeeper Alisson to put Morocco ahead.

The 2022 World Cup semi-finalists nearly doubled their advantage shortly afterward, but  right-back Achraf Hakimi elected to shoot rather than square the ball to Diaz in a promising position.

Brazil eventually found themselves level through Vinicius. The 25-year-old collected a pass from Guimaraes near the byline, skipped past Neil El Aynaoui and fired home from a tight angle to level the score before halftime.

Ancelotti, Brazil's first ever foreign coach reacted at the break by replacing both Casemiro and Ibanez with Fabinho and Danilo, with the changes helping the South American team regain greater control of the contest. Brazil who last won the World Cup in 2002, looked more organized after the interval and spent long periods pushing Morocco deeper into their own half.

Morocco goalkeeper Yassine Bounou was required to make several important saves, keeping out efforts from Igor Thiago and later substitute Luis Henrique as Brazil searched for a winner.

Mohamed Ouahbi's team, meanwhile, remained dangerous on the counterattack and nearly snatched victory late on after a mistake from Alisson created a promising opportunity.

Despite Brazil's improved second-half display, Ancelotti admitted his side has significant work to do if it hopes to challenge for a sixth World Cup title.

"We need to improve," the Italian said after the match. "This was a tough match, especially in the beginning. The team was a bit anxious, nerves were all over the place. I think we have to reassess what we did in this match. But we can't lose heart - you don't win a World Cup based on your first match."

Morocco head coach Mohamed Ouahbi, who took charge earlier this year, was encouraged by his team's performance despite missing out on all three points.

"The players are disappointed because they wanted to win," Ouahbi said. "In the second half, the rhythm dropped but that is understandable against a team of this quality."

The result leaves both teams with work to do in Group C, though Morocco's performance reinforced its status as one of the tournament's potential dark horses, while Brazil will look for further improvement under Ancelotti as the World Cup progresses.

Other results of the day:

Qatar 1-1 Switzerland in Group B

Scotland 1-0 Haiti in Group C

Australia 2-0 Türkiye in Group D