Samir Xaud addresses the renewal of Brazilian national team coach Carlo Ancelotti
Samir Xaud has confirmed that the contract extension of Carlo Ancelotti with the Brazilian national team is well on track. The president of the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) was in Porto Alegre for official engagements and held a press conference Tuesday evening at the Beira-Rio stadium.
The topic has been under discussion for some time. Xaud has repeatedly expressed his desire to keep Ancelotti and was betting on extending his contract until 2030 in the near future, something he hopes will happen shortly.
“I’ve made it very clear that the CBF’s intention is to renew until 2030. I think what’s missing are just fine-tuning, legal adjustments. We’re in the final stretch of those last tweaks, but I’ve already made it clear that our intention is to continue the work and give the entire staff and Ancelotti enough time to leave a positive legacy for our national team,” Xaud stated.
“We have the most successful coach in the world, who was willing to come and manage a national team—the first national team he has ever coached—and he made a point of saying he came because it was Brazil, the most successful national team of all. We need to make the most of his time here to leave a lasting positive legacy for Brazilian football, which has deserved this for many years,” he added.
The president’s relaxed tone stems from his relationship with the coach. Since January, both parties have had an agreement in principle. There was an expectation of signing in February, which did not materialize.
Discussions for the continuity of the project began in October and progressed toward the end of the year, with Ancelotti approving the terms proposed by the CBF. With both sides in agreement, finalizing the new contract now depends only on bureaucratic matters and is already under review by the legal department to iron out clauses and details.
Ancelotti already earns the highest salary among national team coaches in the world, around €10 million per year (approximately R$63.4 million). The extension will be under similar conditions, with adjustments to performance bonuses. The current contract also includes a €5 million (R$31.7 million) bonus if Brazil wins the 2026 World Cup.
Besides Ancelotti, Xaud needs to resolve the situations of executive director Rodrigo Caetano, technical manager Cícero Souza, and technical coordinator Juan. Their current deals expire at the end of the year.
**And what about Neymar?**
Of course, Neymar was a topic at the CBF president’s press conference. The Santos star is among the 55 players on Ancelotti’s preliminary list for the World Cup. On Monday, the Italian will announce the final 26-man squad.
“I can’t say I’m not the coach, but I’m sure the staff—I always say this—has full autonomy. I don’t interfere, and there is no external interference whatsoever, especially from the president,” Samir Xaud emphasized.
The national team is in Group C and will debut on June 11 against Morocco in New Jersey. Brazil will then face Haiti on June 19 in Philadelphia and conclude the group stage against Scotland on June 24 in Miami.
