Brazil W

1914–1929: Early history

Historical records indicate that Brazil's first-ever game was a 1914 match between a Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo select team and the English club Exeter City, held in the stadium of Fluminense FC. Brazil won 2–0 with goals by Oswaldo Gomes and Osman Medeiros, though it has also been claimed that the match was a 3–3 draw. In 1916, Brazil played its first matches against Chile and Uruguay.

Brazil achieved third place at the first two editions of the South American Championship—which would later become the Copa América—in 1916 and 1917. Led by the goalscoring abilities of Arthur Friedenreich, they were champions in the 1919 edition, which was held in their own country. Brazil finished third in 1920 and second in 1921. They won the 1922 championship, again on home soil, and achieved second place in 1925.

1930–1949: First World Cup appearance and title drought

In 1930, Brazil played in the first FIFA World Cup, held in Uruguay. After losing to Yugoslavia and defeating Bolivia in the group stage, they were eliminated from the competition. Four years later, Brazil lost in the first round to Spain in the all-knockout 1934 World Cup in Italy.

After finishing second at the 1937 South American Championship, Brazil reached the semi-finals at the 1938 FIFA World Cup in France. They were eliminated by eventual champions Italy, but managed to achieve third place after defeating Sweden. Brazil was the only South American team to participate in the tournament; other teams held a boycott to protest the tournament being held in Europe twice in a row. During World War II, Brazil finished third in the 1942 South American Championship and second in the 1945 edition. After the war, Brazil achieved second place at the 1946 edition, and won their third title at the 1949 edition, held in Brazil. The victory ended the team's 27-year drought without a South American title.

1950: World Cup and the Maracanazo

After World War II caused widespread destruction in Europe, Brazil's bid to host the 1950 FIFA World Cup went unopposed. During the tournament's group stage, Brazil defeated Mexico 4–0 at the Maracanã in Rio de Janeiro (then the Brazilian capital), tied with Switzerland 2–2 at the Pacaembu in São Paulo, and returned to the Maracanã to defeat Yugoslavia 2–0.

Unlike World Cup tournaments before and after, this edition had a final group stage to decide the champion. At this stage, Brazil defeated Sweden 7–1 and Spain 6–1. In the last game of the final round against Uruguay at the Maracanã, Brazil needed a win or draw to achieve a World Cup victory. Uruguay defeated Brazil 2–1, winning the World Cup in a game known as the Maracanazo. The defeat led to a period of national mourning in Brazil, and marked the end of the Brazil team wearing white as their default uniform.

1951–1957: Modern uniform and the "Battle of Berne"

After the disappointment of the Maracanazo, Brazil finished second at the 1953 South American Championship in Peru. At the 1954 World Cup in Switzerland, Brazil debuted a new uniform designed by Aldyr Schlee. It featured yellow shirts with green details, blue shorts, and white socks, and is still used today. In Brazil's two group stage matches, they defeated Mexico 5–0 and tied with Yugoslavia 1–1. In the quarter-finals, Brazil lost 4–2 to Hungary in one of the ugliest matches in football history, known as the "Battle of Berne". Brazil did not play in the 1955 South American Championship, but finished fourth in 1956 and second in 1957.

1958–1970: Pelé and the First Golden Era

During the 1958 World Cup in Sweden, Brazil defeated Austria 3–0 in their first group match, then tied England 0–0. Before their third group match against the Soviet Union, coach Vicente Feola added Zito, Garrincha, and Pelé to the starting line-up. From the kick-off, Brazil applied relentless pressure; in his biography of Garrincha, Ruy Castro described the first three minutes of the match as "the greatest three minutes in the history of football". Vavá gave Brazil the lead, and they won the match 2–0. Pelé scored the only goal of their quarter-final victory over Wales, and Brazil defeated France 5–2 in the semi-final. Brazil then achieved a 5–2 victory over Sweden in the final, winning their first World Cup and becoming the first nation to win a World Cup outside of its own continent. Pelé described the moment as "a nation coming of age".