See how the Brazilian National Team will use AI to select its players.

With Brazilian National Team squad announcement for the 2026 World Cup scheduled for this Monday (18), technology also enters the field: thanks to an agreement signed between CBF and Google, the technical committee led by Carlo Ancelotti had resources at his disposal Gemini Artificial Intelligence To analyze data, performance, and athlete behavior before making decisions about team selections and strategies. The partnership involves everything from the senior men's and women's national football teams to the youth categories. Learn more below:

Agreement between CBF and Google

The agreement between the Brazilian Football Confederation and Google transforms the technology company into Official sponsor of the Brazilian National Football Teams for the next two years. The partnership covers both men's and women's football, including professional teams and youth categories such as Under-15, Under-17, Under-20 and Under-23. In addition to brand exposure, the project's main differentiating factor is the integration of generative artificial intelligence In the sports environment, bringing Brazilian football closer to the most advanced technological tools on the market.

At the heart of the agreement is the Google Gemini, a generative AI platform that can be used by technical committees to assist in player performance analysisThe goal is to provide faster and more strategic support for technical evaluations, helping national team professionals identify patterns, physical performance, and potential on-field trends before friendly matches, call-ups, and official competitions. This involves interpreting statistics and cross-referencing data on matches, training sessions, and athletes' tactical behavior.

The partnership also includes actions involving Google search and the strategic presence of the group's brands in the digital content of CBFincluding social media, press conferences, and promotional campaigns. Unlike other sponsors, however, Google will not have its brand displayed on the national team's training uniforms during the World Cup. The focus of the contract is more related to tecnologic innovation, content production and strengthening the relationship between football, data and artificial intelligence.

This move is part of a larger strategy by the CBF (Brazilian Football Confederation) to increase revenue and modernize the structure of the national teams in a World Cup year. In recent months, the organization has also announced agreements with companies such as... Uber, Volkswagen, iFood and SadiaAccording to estimates released by the confederation itself, the new contracts could add approximately R $ million 250 in revenue during the 2026 World Cup cycle, driven by increased global visibility of the Brazilian National Team.

How AI helps in performance analysis.

A performance analysis in football This area is responsible for studying, interpreting, and transforming game and training information into strategic data for coaches and technical staff. Today, clubs and national teams monitor virtually every aspect of a match: player positioning, physical intensity, off-the-ball movement, number of passes, average speed, shots on goal, defensive pressure, and decision-making on the field. The goal is to understand more precisely the team's collective behavior and the individual performance of each player throughout the season.

To handle this enormous amount of information, many teams have started creating specialized departments in performance analysis and sports intelligenceThese teams bring together data analysts, video professionals, physiologists, statisticians, and technology specialists who work daily alongside the technical staff. During training sessions and matches, software captures thousands of data points in real time, while analysts produce detailed reports that help coaches define strategies, adjust positioning, and evaluate potential call-ups or signings.

It is in this scenario that the Artificial Intelligence It is gaining ground as a tool capable of accelerating and expanding this work. AI-based systems can process videos, statistics, and tactical patterns in seconds, identifying behaviors that would be difficult to perceive through human observation alone. The technology also helps compare athletes from different leagues, predict performance trends, detect physical falls, and even indicate which plays have a higher chance of success depending on the opponent's style.

In recent years, the use of data has become an essential part of professional football. Major European clubs and national teams have begun investing heavily in technology and analytics infrastructure to gain a competitive edge on the field. In many cases, decisions regarding lineups, substitutions, physical recovery, and tactical planning are already made with the direct support of these departments.

Watch the announcement of the Brazilian National Team's roster.

The official announcement of Brazilian soccer team for 2026 World Cup It happens this Monday (18), at 17 pm (Brasília time), with the announcement made by the coach. Carlo AncelottiThe event will be broadcast live on free-to-air TV by Globo and SBTin addition to pay-TV channels such as SporTV, ESPN and CNN BrazilOnline, the announcement can also be followed through the channels of CBF TV, CazéTV, GE TV and other YouTube channels, which will provide real-time coverage with analysis and behind-the-scenes footage.

The ceremony will be held at Museum of Tomorrow, in the port area of ​​Rio de Janeiro, chosen by CBF As the official venue for the announcement of the final list of 26 players who will represent Brazil in the World Cup held in the United States, Mexico, and Canada, the event will feature a special structure for national and international press, guests of the governing body, and presentation activities related to the World Cup. According to reports, approximately 1.200 guests and about 300 journalists are expected to attend the ceremony in person; it will not be open to the public and tickets will not be sold.

And you? Did you know that... Brazil National Team I used the Gemini: How do we analyze the players? Tell us in the comments below!

See also:

Source: Google.

reviewed by Tiago Rodrigues in 18 / 05 / 2026