Argentina–Brazil Football Rivalry
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The Argentina–Brazil football rivalry, also known as Battle of the Americas or the Superclassic of the Americas (; ), is a sports rivalry between the national football teams of Brazil and Argentina. The rivalry is considered one of the biggest and fiercest in international football and
FIFA The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (), more commonly known by its acronym FIFA ( ), is the international self-regulatory governing body of association football, beach soccer, and futsal. It was founded on 21 May 1904 to o ...
has described it as the "essence of football rivalry". Initially a cordial friendly competition between the two nations, the ferocity of the rivalry grew in the early part of the 20th century, marked by repeated controversial high-profile incidents and periods of refusing to play each other. The games between the two nations are known for both the high degree of skill and capability of the respective players, as well as a high level of competitiveness at a personal, federation and national level. The two teams are routinely considered to be among the best in the world, and commonly among the favourites for football tournaments such as the
FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often called the World Cup, is an international association football competition among the senior List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams of the members of the FIFA, Fédération Internatio ...
and
CONMEBOL CONMEBOL ( ) or CSF (; ; ), is the continental governing body of football in South America and it is one of FIFA's six continental confederations. The oldest continental confederation in the world, its headquarters are located in Luque, Parag ...
Copa América The CONMEBOL Copa América (; known until 1975 as the South American Football Championship), often simply called the Copa America, is the top men's quadrennial association football, football tournament contested among list of men's national ass ...
. They are also routinely ranked among the top national teams in the world in both the
FIFA World Rankings The FIFA Men's World Ranking is a ranking system for men's national teams in association football, first introduced in December 1992. The men's teams of the member nations of FIFA, football's world governing body, are ranked based on their gam ...
and the
World Football Elo Ratings The World Football Elo Ratings are a ranking system for men's national association football teams that is published by the website eloratings.net. It is based on the Elo rating system but includes modifications to take various football-specific v ...
. As a matter of sporting pride, the two nations have produced players who in their own eras have often been considered to be the best in the world. This includes players such as
Alfredo Di Stéfano Alfredo Stéfano Di Stéfano Laulhé (; 4 July 1926 – 7 July 2014) was an Argentine professional footballer and coach who played as a forward, widely regarded as one of the greatest footballers of all time. Nicknamed "Saeta Rubia" ("Blond A ...
,
Diego Maradona Diego Armando Maradona Franco (30 October 196025 November 2020) was an Argentine professional association football, football player and manager. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of the sport, he was one of the two ...
, and
Lionel Messi Lionel Andrés "Leo" Messi (; born 24 June 1987) is an Argentine professional Association football, footballer who plays as a forward (association football), forward for and Captain (association football), captains both Major League Soccer ...
for Argentina and
Pelé Edson Arantes do Nascimento (; 23 October 1940 – 29 December 2022), better known by his nickname Pelé (), was a Brazilian professional Association football, footballer who played as a Forward (association football), forward. Widely reg ...
,
Ronaldo Ronaldo is a Portuguese given name equivalent to the English Ronald. It became a common name in all Portuguese-speaking countries, also prevalent in other Romance countries. People Notable people known as Ronaldo include: Association footballe ...
, and
Ronaldinho Ronaldo de Assis Moreira (born 21 March 1980), commonly known as Ronaldinho Gaúcho () or simply Ronaldinho, is a Brazilian former professional Association football, footballer who played as an attacking midfielder or left winger. Widely reg ...
from Brazil. In head to head comparison of senior titles, Brazil has won five
FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often called the World Cup, is an international association football competition among the senior List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams of the members of the FIFA, Fédération Internatio ...
s while Argentina has won three. In contrast Argentina has won the
Copa América The CONMEBOL Copa América (; known until 1975 as the South American Football Championship), often simply called the Copa America, is the top men's quadrennial association football, football tournament contested among list of men's national ass ...
sixteen times, compared to Brazil's nine. Moreover, the two nations have also seen success in other inter-confederation competitions, such as the
FIFA Confederations Cup The FIFA Confederations Cup was an international association football tournament for men's national teams, held every four years by FIFA. It was contested by the holders of each of the six continental championships ( AFC, CAF, CONCACAF, CONMEBO ...
, won four times by Brazil and once by Argentina, the
CONMEBOL–UEFA Cup of Champions The Finalissima or officially CONMEBOL–UEFA Cup of Champions, formerly known as European/South American Nations Cup and also called Artemio Franchi Cup, is an intercontinental football match organised by CONMEBOL and UEFA and contested by th ...
, that Argentina won twice and Brazil none, and the
Panamerican Championship The Panamerican Championship was an official continental competition of association football organized by the Panamerican Football Confederation (PFC) every four years for senior national teams, with three editions held from 1952 through 1960. Th ...
, won twice by Brazil and once by Argentina.


History

The origins of the football rivalry between
Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...
and
Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
can be traced to a time before football became popular in both countries. Their
rivalry A rivalry is the state of two people or groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each participant ...
is found in almost all sports, but a men's
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
match between Argentina and Brazil is particularly important. Since their first match in 1914, the men's national teams have played more than 100 matches including friendlies,
FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often called the World Cup, is an international association football competition among the senior List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams of the members of the FIFA, Fédération Internatio ...
matches, and other official competitions (excluding matches between youth sides). The rivalry began with Argentina's 3–0 victory in 1914, but the early period of the rivalry was marked by periods of non-engagement due to violent incidents. Notably, after a violent Copa América final in 1925, both teams refrained from competing in tournaments where the other was present (Brazil withdrawing from the Copa America until a single appearance in 1937), and a similar decade long hiatus followed a 1946 match with Argentina not playing at any World Cups until 1958. Argentina initially dominated the rivalry in head-to-head matches, and went on to have considerable success in the Copa America both with and without the Brazilians in attendance. Argentina won 12 titles between 1921 and 1959 (and were runners up 7 times), including seven wins against Brazil in the final (Brazils first success in the final against Argentina would arrive in 2004). However, after being runners-up at the first ever world cup in 1930, Argentina fell behind Brazil on the global stage after their rivals went on to win three World Cups, in
1958 Events January * January 1 – The European Economic Community (EEC) comes into being. * January 3 – The West Indies Federation is formed. * January 4 ** Edmund Hillary's Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition completes the thir ...
,
1962 The year saw the Cuban Missile Crisis, which is often considered the closest the world came to a Nuclear warfare, nuclear confrontation during the Cold War. Events January * January 1 – Samoa, Western Samoa becomes independent from Ne ...
and
1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 1970 Tonghai earthquake, Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli ...
while their figurehead Pelé was to become the face of international football. Argentina eventually won their first World Cup in
1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd ...
hosted in their home country, facing Brazil on their way, and won a second title in Mexico in
1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. ** Spain and Portugal en ...
led by their own hero Maradona. The two teams faced each other again in the World Cup knock out stages at the
1990 World Cup The 1990 FIFA World Cup was the 14th FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial Association football, football tournament for men's senior national teams. It was held from 8 June to 8 July 1990 in Italy, the second country to host the event for a second ...
, where Argentina were eventual runners up against West Germany. Brazil subsequently added two more titles in 1994 and 2002 to bring their total to five, and Argentina won the 2022 title to bring their total to three. Between 1914 and 1976 the two nations competed in the
Roca Cup The Roca Cup () was a football competition contested between Argentina and Brazil national teams from 1914 to 1976 on irregular basis. The Copa Roca was the first trophy, official or unofficial, ever won by a Brazil national team. History The c ...
on 12 occasions. In 2011 the competition was reinstituted as the Superclassic of the Americas, which ran annually until 2019 (except in 2015 and 2016).


Incidents and historical matches


1925 Copa América

For the 1925 Copa América, Argentina and Brazil played the final match at Sportivo Barracas Stadium on Christmas Day, drawing a crowd of more than 30,000 people. After 27 minutes Lagarto intercepted a back pass by
Ludovico Bidoglio Ludovico Bidoglio, sometimes nicknamed ''Vico'' (5 February 1900 – 25 December 1970) was an Argentina, Argentine association football, football player, and one of Boca Juniors' idols during the 1920s. His position on the field was defender (ass ...
and passed the ball to
Arthur Friedenreich Arthur is a masculine given name of uncertain etymology. Its popularity derives from it being the name of the legendary hero King Arthur. A common spelling variant used in many Slavic, Romance, and Germanic languages is Artur. In Spanish and Ital ...
, who beat
Américo Tesoriere Américo Miguel Tesoriere, sometimes nicknamed ''Mérico'' (Buenos Aires, March 18, 1899 – December 30, 1977), was an Argentina, Argentine association football, football goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper who spent most of his career ...
with a strong shot, making it 1–0 to Brazil. Three minutes later, Nilo scored the second for the '' canarinha''. The crowd was astonished, because if the Brazilian lead was maintained, a new match would have to be played to determine the champion. Before completing the first half, a dangerous counterattack by the visitors was stopped by
Ramón Muttis Ramón Alfredo Muttis (12 March 1899 – 12 January 1992) was an Argentine football defender who spent most of his career with Boca Juniors. He also played for the Argentina national team winning the 1925 South American Championship. Muttis ( ...
with a strong foul on Friedenreich, who in turn reacted with a kick. The Argentine responded with a punch in the Brazilian's face, and the incident sparked a clash involving several players and a pitch invasion by some spectators. The game was suspended and only resumed - without a sending-off - after a hug between Friedenreich and Muttis that sealed a truce. However, the match had changed course, at the end of the first half Antonio Cerrotti reduced the deficit and opened the road to recovery. The equaliser came ten minutes into the second half through
Manuel Seoane Manuel Seoane (19 March 1902 – 21 August 1975), nicknamed ''La Chancha'', was an Argentine footballer who played as a striker for Independiente and Argentina national team. Seoane is considered one of the best all-time players for Independi ...
. The match ended 2–2, and Argentina won its second Copa America. The incidents did not go unnoticed in Brazil and some local newspapers referred to the game as ''"The Barracas' War"''. Because of this match, Argentina and Brazil did not play officially again for 11 years.


1937 Copa América final

In the
1937 South American Championship The fourteenth edition of the South American Championship of football was held in Buenos Aires, Argentina from 27 December 1936 to 1 February 1937. The participating countries were Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay thus mak ...
(currently
Copa América The CONMEBOL Copa América (; known until 1975 as the South American Football Championship), often simply called the Copa America, is the top men's quadrennial association football, football tournament contested among list of men's national ass ...
), the rivalry between both teams was already something of national pride. There were verbal confrontations between both parties, and Argentine fans often taunted the Brazilians by calling them ''macaquitos'' and making monkey sounds. The final match, held in
Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...
, was played between the two sides and was goalless after 90 minutes. In extra time, Argentina scored two goals. Questioning one of the goals and fearful for their own safety, the Brazilian players decided to leave the stadium before the match was officially finished. The Brazilian press has since called this match "''jogo da vergonha''" ("the shame game"). Argentina won, 2–0, and was the South American champion again.


1939 Copa Roca

The 1939 edition of the Roca Cup was the longest in history, having been defined after four matches. The first two games were held in Estádio São Januário in
Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...
. The first one, held in January, ended 5–1 to Argentina. A second match was held only one week later, with the Brazilian team seeking revenge for the previous defeat. The match was vibrating; first Brazil went ahead 1–0, then Argentina recovered to lead 1–2, and Brazil then drew level at 2–2. Shortly before the end of the match, the referee, the same as in the previous match, gave a penalty to Brazil. Furious, Argentina player Arcadio López verbally attacked the referee and had to be escorted out of the pitch by police. The Argentine team, enraged by the actions of the referee and the police, left the pitch. The penalty that gave Brazil the 3–2 victory was scored without a goalkeeper, because the entire Argentine team had already walked off the pitch. As both teams had won one match each, a third game was scheduled to be played at Parque Antarctica in
São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...
. The match ended 2–2
after extra time Overtime (OT) or extra time (ET) is an additional period of play to bring a game to a decision and avoid declaring the match a Tie (draw), tie or draw where the scores are the same. In some sports, this extra period is played only if the game is ...
therefore a fourth and final match was held in the same venue and was won by Argentina 3–0, which finally won the trophy.


1945–1946 incidents

In the 1945 Copa Roca match that Brazil won 6–2, young Brazilian
Ademir de Menezes Ademir Marques de Menezes (; 8 November 1922 – 11 May 1996) was a Brazilian footballer, regarded as one of the best forwards in the country's history. His prominent underbite earned him the nickname (The Jaw). He was also the top goalscore ...
fractured Argentine José Battagliero's leg. Though it seemed to be only an unfortunate accident, the game was played roughly and sometimes violent. A few months later, the
1946 South American Championship The nineteenth edition of the South American Championship in football was held in Buenos Aires, Argentina from 12 January to 10 February. This tournament, an ''extra'' edition with no trophy handed to the winners, is considered official by CON ...
final again involved Argentina and Brazil. There was widespread media coverage, and the conviction that it would be a rough match. Twenty-eight minutes after the start, when both teams went for a free ball, Brazilian Jair Rosa Pinto fractured Argentine captain
José Salomón José Salomón (9 July 1916 in La Plata – 22 January 1990) was an Argentine football defender who played club football for Talleres de Remedios de Escalada and Racing Club de Avellaneda and captained the Argentina national football team. Salo ...
's
tibia The tibia (; : tibiae or tibias), also known as the shinbone or shankbone, is the larger, stronger, and anterior (frontal) of the two Leg bones, bones in the leg below the knee in vertebrates (the other being the fibula, behind and to the outsi ...
and
fibula The fibula (: fibulae or fibulas) or calf bone is a leg bone on the lateral side of the tibia, to which it is connected above and below. It is the smaller of the two bones and, in proportion to its length, the most slender of all the long bones. ...
. General disorder ensued, with Argentine and Brazilian players fighting on the pitch with the police. The public invaded the pitch and both teams had to go to the dressing rooms. After order was restored the game continued, and Argentina won the match 2–0. Salomón never recovered completely nor played professional football after the incident.


1974 World Cup

It would be the first-ever meeting between Brazil and Argentina in the FIFA World Cup. Defending champions Brazil faced Argentina in West Germany's
Niedersachsenstadion Niedersachsenstadion (, ) is a football stadium in Hanover, Lower Saxony, Germany, which is home to football club Hannover 96. The original 86,000-capacity stadium was completed in 1954 and has since been rebuilt several times for various major ...
in
Hanover Hanover ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Its population of 535,932 (2021) makes it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-l ...
in the second round as both were placed in
Group A Group A is a set of motorsport regulations administered by the FIA covering production derived touring cars for competition, usually in touring car racing and rallying. In contrast to the short-lived Group B and Group C, Group A vehicles wer ...
. Brazil won it by 2–1 via goals from
Rivellino Roberto Rivellino (; born 1 January 1946), known as just Rivellino, is a Brazilian football pundit and former player who was one of the key members of Brazil's 1970 FIFA World Cup-winning team. The son of Italian immigrants from Macchiagodena, ...
and
Jairzinho Jair Ventura Filho (born 25 December 1944), better known as Jairzinho (), is a Brazilian former professional footballer. A quick, skillful, and powerful right winger known for his finishing ability and eye for goal, he was a key member and leadi ...
whereas
Brindisi Brindisi ( ; ) is a city in the region of Apulia in southern Italy, the capital of the province of Brindisi, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. Historically, the city has played an essential role in trade and culture due to its strategic position ...
scored the only goal for Argentina.


1978 World Cup

The Group B of the second round was essentially a battle between Argentina and Brazil, and it was resolved in controversial circumstances. In the first round of group games, Brazil beat
Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...
3–0 while Argentina saw off
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...
2–0. Brazil and Argentina then played out a tense and violent goalless draw – also known as "''A Batalha de Rosário''" ("The Battle of Rosario"), so both teams went into the last round of matches with three points. Argentina had an advantage that their match against Peru kicked off several hours after Brazil's match with Poland. Brazil won their match 3–1, so Argentina knew that they had to beat Peru by four clear goals to go through to the final. Argentina managed it with what some saw as a suspicious degree of ease. Trailing 2–0 at half-time, Peru simply collapsed in the second half, and Argentina eventually won 6–0. Rumours suggested that Peru might have been somehow illicitly induced not to try too hard (especially because the Peruvian goalkeeper,
Ramón Quiroga Ramón Quiroga Arancibia (born 23 July 1950) is a former football player and coach who played as a goalkeeper. Born in Argentina, he obtained 40 caps playing for the Peru national football team. He is a youth coach for the Peruvian club Cienci ...
, was born in Argentina); but nothing could be proved, and Argentina met the
Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
in the final. Brazil, denied a final place by Argentina's 6–0 win over Peru, took third place from an enterprising
Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
side and were dubbed "moral champions" by coach Cláudio Coutinho, because they did not win the tournament but did not lose a single match either.


1982 World Cup

Brazil and Argentina were grouped together (along with Italy) in the second group stage in Group C, which was dubbed as the "
group of death A group of death in a multi-stage tournament is a group which is unusually competitive, because the number of strong competitors in the group is greater than the number of qualifying places available for the next phase of the tournament. Thus, in ...
". In the opener, Italy prevailed 2–1 over Argentina. Argentina now needed a win over Brazil on the second day, but they were no match. The Brazilians' attacking game, characterised by nimble one-touch passing on-the-run, eclipsed the reigning world champions. The final score of 3–1 – Argentina only scoring in the last minute – could have been much higher had Brazil centre-forward Serginho not wasted a series of near-certain scoring opportunities. Frustrated because of the poor refereeing and the imminent loss, Diego Maradona kicked Brazilian player
Batista Batista is a Spanish language, Spanish or Portuguese language, Portuguese surname. Notable persons with the name include: * Batista (footballer, born 1955), Brazilian football player João Batista da Silva * Dave Bautista, Batista (wrestler) (Dave ...
and received a straight
red card A red card is a type of penalty card that is shown in many sports after a rules infraction. Red card may also refer to: Art, entertainment, and media * ''Red Card'' (album), 1976 release by Streetwalkers * Red card, suit (cards) of hearts or di ...
. Brazil lost their next game to Italy and thus exited the World Cup along with Argentina.


1990 World Cup (The "holy water" scandal)

The teams met in the World Cup Round of 16 at the
1990 World Cup The 1990 FIFA World Cup was the 14th FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial Association football, football tournament for men's senior national teams. It was held from 8 June to 8 July 1990 in Italy, the second country to host the event for a second ...
. Argentina defeated Brazil 1–0 with a goal from
Claudio Caniggia Claudio Paul Caniggia (; born 9 January 1967) is an Argentine former professional footballer who played as forward or winger. Caniggia played 50 times for the Argentina national team. He appeared in three World Cups, and was a member of bot ...
after a pass from Diego Maradona. The end of the match was controversial however, with Brazilian player Branco accusing the Argentina training staff of giving him a bottle of water laced with tranquillizers while they were tending to an injured player. Years later, Maradona admitted the truth on an Argentine television show, saying that Branco had been given "holy water". The
Argentine Football Association The Argentine Football Association (, ; AFA) is the governing body of football in Argentina based in Buenos Aires. It organises the main divisions of Argentine football league system, Argentine league system (from Argentine Primera División, Pri ...
and the team coach of the time,
Carlos Bilardo Dr. Carlos Salvador Bilardo (born 16 March 1938) is an Argentine former physician, football player, and manager. Bilardo achieved worldwide renown as a player with Estudiantes de La Plata in the 1960s, and as the manager of the Argentina side t ...
, denied that the "holy water" incident ever took place, though prior to the previous denial Bilardo said of Branco's allegation: "I'm not saying it didn't happen."


1991 Copa América match

Argentina defeated Brazil 3–2 in
Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...
in the first match of the final pool. Five players were sent off: Claudio Caniggia and
Mazinho Iomar do Nascimento (born 8 April 1966), known as Mazinho, is a Brazilian football manager and former player. Mazinho played primarily as a defensive midfielder and a full-back in his professional playing career. As a manager, he had a short ...
after tangling in the 31st minute;
Carlos Enrique Carlos Alberto Enrique (born 12 December 1963 in Adrogué) is a former Argentine football defender who won the Copa América 1991 with Argentina. At club level he won the Copa Libertadores and Copa Intercontinental with Club Atlético Independi ...
and
Márcio Santos Márcio Roberto dos Santos (born 15 September 1969), commonly known as Márcio Santos, is a former association footballer, who played as a defender. Club career Santos was born in São Paulo, and played for several clubs throughout his career, ...
for another fight in the 61st minute, with one player leaving on a stretcher; and Careca Bianchezi in the 80th minute, two minutes after coming on as a substitute.


1993 Copa América match

Argentina and Brazil finished 1–1 in the quarterfinal match, played in
Guayaquil Guayaquil (), officially Santiago de Guayaquil, is the largest city in Ecuador and also the nation's economic capital and main port. The city is the capital (political), capital of Guayas Province and the seat of Guayaquil Canton. The city is ...
. Brazil took the lead, but
Leonardo Rodríguez Leonardo ("Leo") Adrián Rodríguez Iacobitti (born 27 August 1966) is an Argentine former professional football midfielder. He played for nine different club sides in his career, and represented the Argentina national team between 1991 and 19 ...
drew with the head after a corner kick in the second half. In penalties, ''Los Gauchos'' defeated Brazil 5–4 after Marco Antônio Boiadeiro missed the final spot kick for Brazil, and advanced to the semi-finals. Argentina won the
Copa América The CONMEBOL Copa América (; known until 1975 as the South American Football Championship), often simply called the Copa America, is the top men's quadrennial association football, football tournament contested among list of men's national ass ...
title after defeating
Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
in the final.


1995 Copa América match

Held in Uruguay, the two nations met at the quarter-finals stage on 17 July 1995. The Brazilian Túlio became famous for scoring a late equalizer five minutes from time after controlling the ball with his left arm. Despite the obvious foul, the referee, Alberto Tejada Noriega of Peru, claimed he did not see the incident and the goal therefore stood. The game finished with a 2–2 draw and Brazil went on to win on penalties. The Argentine media labeled the incident as the "hand of the devil", a reference to the controversial goal scored by Diego Maradona in the
1986 World Cup The 1986 FIFA World Cup was the 13th FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial football tournament for men's senior national teams. It was played in Mexico from 31 May to 29 June 1986. The tournament was the second to feature a 24-team format. Colombia had ...
against
England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
.


2004 Copa América final

Argentina was winning 2–1, but
Adriano Adriano is the form of the Latin given name ''Hadrianus'' commonly used in the Italian language; the form Adrião can be used in the Portuguese language while the form Adrian is used in the English language. Notable people with the name include: ...
scored a goal in the last minute of the match, taking the match to penalties. Brazil won with Júlio César stopping a shot from
Andrés D'Alessandro Andrés Nicolás D'Alessandro (born 15 April 1981) is an Argentine former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. He has played top-flight football in Argentina, Germany, England, Spain, Brazil and Uruguay. He won an Olym ...
. Brazil were playing with its second-string team.


2005 Confederations Cup final

In 2005, Brazil and Argentina participated in the
2005 FIFA Confederations Cup The 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup association football, football tournament was the seventh FIFA Confederations Cup. It was held in Germany between 15 June and 29 June 2005, as a prelude to the 2006 FIFA World Cup. The tournament was won by 2002 FI ...
. Brazil entered the competition as the reigning World Cup champion at the time. However, since Brazil had also won the Copa América the previous year, Copa runners-up Argentina was allowed to participate in the tournament to take up the vacated berth. In the semi-finals, Brazil eliminated host nation
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
, while Argentina eliminated Mexico. This competition was the first time the two rivals would meet in a final game of a tournament sponsored by FIFA. The Brazilian team won the game easily, thrashing the Argentines 4–1. Adriano scored twice for Brazil, along with
Kaká Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite (; born 22 April 1982), commonly known as Kaká () or Ricardo Kaká, is a Brazilian former professional Association football, footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. In his prime at A.C. Milan, AC Mil ...
and
Ronaldinho Ronaldo de Assis Moreira (born 21 March 1980), commonly known as Ronaldinho Gaúcho () or simply Ronaldinho, is a Brazilian former professional Association football, footballer who played as an attacking midfielder or left winger. Widely reg ...
, while
Pablo Aimar Pablo César Aimar (born 3 November 1979) is an Argentine former professional Association football, footballer and current assistant coach of the Argentina national football team, Argentina national team. During his career, he played as an attack ...
scored Argentina's only goal.


2007 Copa América final

Brazil defeated Argentina 3–0 in
Maracaibo Maracaibo ( , ; ) is a city and municipality in northwestern Venezuela, on the western shore of the strait that connects Lake Maracaibo to the Gulf of Venezuela. It is the largest city in Venezuela and is List of cities in Venezuela by population ...
, Venezuela, in the final. The goals scored were by
Júlio Baptista Júlio César Clemente Pereira Baptista (born 1 October 1981) is a Brazilian football manager and former player who played as an attacking midfielder or a forward. Baptista is nicknamed "The Beast" due to his size and physical presence on the ...
, an own goal by
Roberto Ayala Roberto Fabián Ayala (; born 14 April 1973), nicknamed ''El Ratón'' ("The Mouse"), is an Argentine former footballer who played as a centre back for the Argentina national football team, as well as Valencia and Real Zaragoza in Spain, Milan a ...
, and
Dani Alves Daniel "Dani" Alves da Silva (; born 6 May 1983) is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as a right-back. Widely regarded as one of the best full-backs of all time, he is also one of the most decorated players with 43 trophies ...
.


2008 Summer Olympics

Defending champions Argentina and Brazil met on 19 August in the semi-final of the Summer Olympics. The game was billed as a tête-à-tête between
Lionel Messi Lionel Andrés "Leo" Messi (; born 24 June 1987) is an Argentine professional Association football, footballer who plays as a forward (association football), forward for and Captain (association football), captains both Major League Soccer ...
and
Ronaldinho Ronaldo de Assis Moreira (born 21 March 1980), commonly known as Ronaldinho Gaúcho () or simply Ronaldinho, is a Brazilian former professional Association football, footballer who played as an attacking midfielder or left winger. Widely reg ...
, two
Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
teammates. It was a hard-fought clash between two historic rivals, marred by numerous fouls and two red cards for Brazil. Argentina convincingly won with a score of 3–0, and went on to beat
Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...
1–0 in the final, being the first to obtain two consecutive gold medals in football in 40 years, and the third overall after the Olympic teams of the United Kingdom and Uruguay.


2019 Copa América

Brazil and Argentina met at the semifinal of the
2019 Copa América The 2019 Copa América was the 46th edition of the Copa América, the international men's association football championship organized by South America's football ruling body CONMEBOL. It was held in Brazil and took place between 14 June and 7 Ju ...
, which was hosted in Brazil. Brazil defeated Argentina 2–0 with goals by
Gabriel Jesus Gabriel Fernando de Jesus (born 3 April 1997) is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a forward for club Arsenal and the Brazil national team. Jesus began his senior club career at Palmeiras, where he was voted Best Newcomer a ...
and Firmino. Argentina eventually placed third and Brazil went on to win their 9th Copa América title.


2021 Copa América final

The
2021 Copa América The 2021 Copa América was the 47th edition of the Copa América, the international men's association football, football championship organised by South America's football ruling body CONMEBOL. The tournament took place in Brazil from 13 June to ...
was originally scheduled to be jointly held in Colombia and Argentina in 2020, but it was postponed to 2021 due to the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
. Colombia and Argentina were removed as hosts due to social unrest in Colombia and the
COVID-19 pandemic in Argentina The COVID-19 pandemic in Argentina is part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 () caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (). As of , a total of people were confirmed to have been infected, and people were ...
. Brazil was chosen to host the tournament. In the final, Argentina defeated Brazil 1–0 with the only goal by
Ángel Di María Ángel Fabián Di María (; born 14 February 1988) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a right winger for Primeira Liga club Benfica. Widely regarded as one of the greatest Argentine players of all time and one of the best pl ...
at the
Maracanã Stadium Maracanã Stadium (, ; named after the Maracanã River), officially known as Jornalista Mário Filho Stadium (, ; , named after Mário Filho), is an association football stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Located in the Maracanã neighbor ...
to win their 15th Copa América title, their first in 28 years.


2026 World Cup qualifiers

On 22 November 2023, Argentina defeated Brazil 1–0 again at the Maracanã in a 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifier that was delayed due to crowd violence. It was the first time in history that Brazil were defeated at home in a
FIFA World Cup qualification The FIFA World Cup qualification is a set of competitive matches that a national association football team plays in order to qualify for one of the available berths at the final tournament of the men's FIFA World Cup. Qualifying tournaments ar ...
match after a run of 51 wins and 13 draws. On 25 March 2025, Argentina defeated Brazil 4-1 again at the Mâs Monumental in a 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifier and Argentina, and became the first South American team to advance into the next FIFA World Cup in 2026. It was the first time Argentina beats Brazil by such a margin since the 60's. It was also Brazil's first back to back loses in the FIFA World Cup Qualifier. The loss forced the CBF to fire coach
Dorival Júnior Dorival Silvestre Júnior (; born 25 April 1962) is a Brazilian professional football coach and former player. He is the current head coach of Corinthians. A defensive midfielder, Júnior notably played for Palmeiras. After retiring, he began ...
a few days later.


Pelé–Maradona rivalry

Among the elite group of players football fans consider as contenders for the title, ''the best player of all time'', Brazil's
Pelé Edson Arantes do Nascimento (; 23 October 1940 – 29 December 2022), better known by his nickname Pelé (), was a Brazilian professional Association football, footballer who played as a Forward (association football), forward. Widely reg ...
and Argentina's
Diego Maradona Diego Armando Maradona Franco (30 October 196025 November 2020) was an Argentine professional association football, football player and manager. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of the sport, he was one of the two ...
are amongst the most famous. Some of their countrymen also feature regularly in such debates. The next most notable pair are perhaps
Garrincha Manuel Francisco dos Santos (28 October 1933 – 20 January 1983), nicknamed Mané Garrincha, best known as simply Garrincha (, "little bird"), was a Brazilian professional association football, footballer who played as a Midfielder#Winger, righ ...
(Brazil)
Lionel Messi Lionel Andrés "Leo" Messi (; born 24 June 1987) is an Argentine professional Association football, footballer who plays as a forward (association football), forward for and Captain (association football), captains both Major League Soccer ...
(Argentina) and
Alfredo Di Stéfano Alfredo Stéfano Di Stéfano Laulhé (; 4 July 1926 – 7 July 2014) was an Argentine professional footballer and coach who played as a forward, widely regarded as one of the greatest footballers of all time. Nicknamed "Saeta Rubia" ("Blond A ...
(Argentina). The most dominant figures from the two countries in the modern game are
Neymar Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior (; born 5 February 1992), also known as Neymar Júnior or simply Neymar, is a Brazilian professional Association football, footballer who plays as a left winger, attacking midfielder or Forward (association foo ...
(Brazilian) and Messi, who both played for
Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
and
Paris Saint-Germain Paris Saint-Germain Football Club, commonly referred to as Paris Saint-Germain () or simply PSG, is a French professional Association football, football club based in Paris. They compete in Ligue 1, the French football league system, top d ...
. Both Pelé and Maradona have declared Neymar and Messi their respective "successors". However, the overriding discussion about which of Pelé and Maradona is the greater has proved to be never-ending. Many consider the comparison between them useless, as they played during incomparable eras and in different leagues. The debate between the pair has been described as "the rivalry of their countries in microcosm". Pelé was given the title "Athlete of the Century" by the
International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; , CIO) is the international, non-governmental, sports governing body of the modern Olympic Games. Founded in 1894 by Pierre de Coubertin and Demetrios Vikelas, it is based i ...
. In 1999, ''Time'' magazine named Pelé one of the 100 Most Important People of the 20th Century. Also, he was elected ''Football Player of the Century'', by France Football's Golden Ball Winners in 1999, ''Football Player of the Century'', and ''South America Football Player of the Century'', both by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics (IFFHS), 1999. For his part, Maradona has been named ''Best Player of the 20th Century'' by the
Globe Soccer Awards The Globe Soccer Awards are awards which acknowledge achievements in football. The event is organized by Globe Soccer and involves participation from international football organizations such as UEFA, UAE Pro League, ECA (European Clubs Associ ...
, the best soccer player in
World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...
history both by ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...
'' and
FourFourTwo ''FourFourTwo'' is an association football magazine published by British company Future. Issued monthly, it published its 300th edition in May 2019. It takes its name from the football formation of the same name, 4–4–2. Future acquired the ...
regarded him as the "Best Football Player of All Time". He was also elected as the "Greatest Athlete in History" by
Corriere Dello Sport – Stadio ''Corriere dello Sport – Stadio'' is an Italian national sports newspaper published in Rome. It was founded in 1924 and renamed ''il Littoriale'' by the Fascist regime from 1927 until July 1943. Its current name dates back to 1977 after the m ...
. The controversy reached a climax during the FIFA Player of the Century in 2000, in which Maradona was voted ''Player of the Century'' in an official internet poll, garnering 53.6% of the votes against 18.53% for Pelé. Shortly before the ceremony, FIFA decided to add a second award and appointed a "Football Family" committee composed of football journalists that gave Pelé the title of The Best Player of the Century to make it a draw. This move was criticized in Argentina, that suspected Pelé was rewarded for his constant support of FIFA, in contrast to Maradona's frequent criticism. Others believe that FIFA was considering issues other than football, notably Maradona's drug problem. Maradona left the ceremony right after receiving his award and before Pelé was given his. In another internet poll that took place in 2002, Maradona received another award from FIFA, as one of his goals was selected as the World Cup Goal of the Century. One of Pelé's goals received third place, while Maradona had a second goal selected as fourth. Despite their frequent confrontations, usually through quotations by the media, Pelé was the guest star of Maradona's TV show ''La Noche del 10'' ("''The Night of the #10''"), where they had a friendly chat and played a bout of headers. The two players also showed great respect for each other despite differences, such as when Pelé stated in 2018 that Maradona was better than Messi, or in 2019 when Maradona prayed for Pelé to recover after the Brazilian legend was admitted to hospital for health reasons. When Maradona died on 25 November 2020, Pelé was among the major football figures to mourn Maradona's death.


Statistics


Major official titles comparison


List of matches

Complete list of matches between both sides: Note: Matches held before 1914 are not recognized by
FIFA The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (), more commonly known by its acronym FIFA ( ), is the international self-regulatory governing body of association football, beach soccer, and futsal. It was founded on 21 May 1904 to o ...
so the International Federation considers that Brazilian squads formed until then were not official representatives of the country. Before 1914, Argentina had toured Brazil twice, the first time in 1908, returning in 1912.


Recognized matches according to both sides


Unrecognized matches

List of matches played from 1908 to 1914 – before the CBF was established – between the Argentina national team and diverse representatives (named themselves "Brazil"), such as Liga Paulista and Liga Carioca combined, or clubs ( Paulistano, SC Americano), among others. It is believed that in the first match held on 2 July 1908, Argentina wore the light blue and white shirt for the first time, although other sources state that the shirt debuted in a
Copa Newton Copa Newton was a football friendly competition contested between Argentina and Uruguay. The trophy, donated by Nicanor Newton,ARGENTINA NATIONAL TEAM ARCHIVE
by Héctor Pelayes on the RSSSF
In 1913, a Liga Paulista team arrived in Argentina to play two friendly matches there.Los orígenes de los clásicos con Brasil (1908-1914)" on Viejos Estadios blogsite


Head-to-head

There is a dispute in the official count of matches. Many sources don't count a few games played between the first team of Argentina against Brazilian State Selections teams, or the first team of Argentina or Brazil played against a "B" team of the rival, so they would not be "International Class A" matches.
ESPN.com.ar ''¿Cómo está el historial general entre Argentina y Brasil?'' 25 March 2025.

Diario Clarín. ''Así quedó el historial entre Argentina y Brasil tras el baile de la Scaloneta en el Monumental''. 25 March 2025
There are 6 controversial matches that many sources count them as official games, many others do not count, and many others count some of them and do not count others. These are those controversial games: * 6 October 1920 (Argentina 3–1 Brazil): many sources say it was not a "Class A match" because it was played with eight players each. * 22 October 1922 (Brazil 2–1 Argentina): many sources say it was not a "Class A match" because Brazil played with their "B" team. The Brazilian "A" team played the same day the 1922 South American Championship play-off, 1922 Copa America final vs.
Paraguay Paraguay, officially the Republic of Paraguay, is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the Argentina–Paraguay border, south and southwest, Brazil to the Brazil–Paraguay border, east and northeast, and Boli ...
.
Goleamos.com
*2 December 1923 (Argentina 0–2 Brazil, Copa Confraternidad): many sources say it was not a "Class A match" because Argentina did not play with its "A" team. The Argentine "A" team played in the same day the decisive game against Uruguay in the 1923 South American Championship, 1923 Copa América.
Goleamos.com
*5 December 1956 (Brazil 1–2 Argentina, Copa Colombo): Many sources say it was not a "Class A match". Brazil did not play with its first national team; it was a Rio de Janeiro state football team, Guanabara State Selection. *7 August 1968 (Brazil 4–1 Argentina): Many sources say it was not a "Class A match". Brazil did not play with its first national team; it was a Rio de Janeiro State Selection.http://biblioteca.afa.org.ar/libros/libro_104/#page/32 AFA's Library. AFA's official Memories and Balance of 1968. Pages 32 and 33 Gira por países de América: 8-7-68 Argentina vs. Combinado de Río de Janeiro. *11 August 1968 (Brazil 3–2 Argentina): Many sources say it was not a "Class A match". Brazil did not play with its first national team; it was a Minas Gerais State Selection.http://biblioteca.afa.org.ar/libros/libro_104/#page/32 AFA's Library. AFA's official Memories and Balance of 1968. Pages 32 and 33 Gira por países de América: 8-11-68 Argentina vs. Selección de Minas Gerais.


Argentina leads by one match (43–42)

Having said that, according to many sources Argentina has won 43 games and Brazil 42.


Argentina leads by two matches (41–39)

According to other sources, Argentina leads by two matches (41 to 39).


Brazil leads by one match (43–42)

According to other sources Brazil leads by one match (43 to 42).


Knockouts

* 1937 South American Championship final: Argentina 2–0 Brazil *
1990 FIFA World Cup The 1990 FIFA World Cup was the 14th FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial Association football, football tournament for men's senior national teams. It was held from 8 June to 8 July 1990 in Italy, the second country to host the event for a second ...
round of 16: Argentina 1–0 Brazil *
1993 Copa América The 1993 Copa América was the 36th Copa América, CONMEBOL's football tournament for national teams. It was held in Ecuador between 15 June and 4 July. All 10 CONMEBOL members took part, but for the first time two nations from outside CONMEBOL w ...
quarter-final: Argentina 1–1 Brazil *
1995 Copa América The 1995 Copa América football tournament was staged in Uruguay. The host country, Uruguay, won it for a record-tying 14th time by beating Brazil 5–3 in the penalty shootout after a 1–1 draw in the final. All 10 CONMEBOL members took part, w ...
quarter-final: Argentina 2–2 Brazil *
1999 Copa América The 1999 Copa América was a football tournament held in Paraguay, from 29 June to 18 July. It was organized by CONMEBOL, South America's football governing body. In order to bring the number of competing teams to twelve, CONMEBOL invited CONCAC ...
quarter-final: Argentina 1–2 Brazil * 2004 Copa América final: Argentina 2–2 Brazil * 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup final: Argentina 1–4 Brazil *
2007 Copa América final The 2007 Copa América final was the final match of the 2007 Copa América. It was held on 15 July 2007 in Maracaibo, Venezuela, between Brazil and Argentina. Brazil won 3–0, with goals from Júlio Baptista, a Roberto Ayala own goal and Dani Alv ...
: Argentina 0–3 Brazil *
2019 Copa América The 2019 Copa América was the 46th edition of the Copa América, the international men's association football championship organized by South America's football ruling body CONMEBOL. It was held in Brazil and took place between 14 June and 7 Ju ...
semi-final: Argentina 0–2 Brazil *
2021 Copa América final The 2021 Copa América final was a Association football, football match to determine the winners of the 2021 Copa América. The match was the 47th List of Copa América finals, final of the Copa América, a quadrennial tournament contested by the ...
: Argentina 1–0 Brazil


Club-level official titles comparison

Note: Only official competitions (organised by
CONMEBOL CONMEBOL ( ) or CSF (; ; ), is the continental governing body of football in South America and it is one of FIFA's six continental confederations. The oldest continental confederation in the world, its headquarters are located in Luque, Parag ...
and/or other continental confederations) are included ;Note:


Copa Libertadores de América

In the history of this tournament, played since
1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Janu ...
, only twice has a Brazilian team captured a title on Argentine soil. In 1963, Brazilian side Santos defeated the most popular Argentine club,
Boca Juniors Club Atlético Boca Juniors () is an Argentine professional sports club based in La Boca, a neighbourhood of Buenos Aires. The club is best known for its men's professional Association football, football team which, since its promotion in 1913 ...
, and in 2017, when Grêmio defeated
Club Atlético Lanús Club Atlético Lanús () is an Argentina, Argentine sports club based in Lanús, a city of the Buenos Aires Province. Founded in 1915, the club's main sports are association football, football and basketball. In both sports, Lanús plays in Arge ...
. However, the same Argentine club team, Boca Juniors, has celebrated three of its six titles on Brazilian soil, defeating
Palmeiras The Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras (), commonly known as Palmeiras, is a Brazilian professional association football, football club based in the city of São Paulo, in the district of Perdizes (district of São Paulo), Perdizes. Palmeiras is ...
in
2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...
, Santos in
2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...
and Grêmio in
2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...
. The two greatest Argentine and Brazilian players that have ever played this sport had at one point played in these same two clubs: Pelé for Santos while Diego Maradona had done the same for Boca Juniors. It has been reported that in all three of Boca Juniors' victories on Brazilian soil, Boca's players were not allowed to properly sleep in their hotel rooms the night before their final matches because of the chaos and noise created by Brazilian fans outside the hotel rooms, who attempted to disrupt the Argentine players from performing to their best of their abilities the following day. In the international arena, the most successful Argentine clubs are
Boca Juniors Club Atlético Boca Juniors () is an Argentine professional sports club based in La Boca, a neighbourhood of Buenos Aires. The club is best known for its men's professional Association football, football team which, since its promotion in 1913 ...
(six Libertadores and three Intercontinental Cups), Independiente (seven Libertadores and two Intercontinental Cups),
Estudiantes de La Plata ( lit. "La Plata Students"), simply referred to as Estudiantes de La Plata, is an Argentine professional sports club based in La Plata. The club's football team currently competes in the Primera División, where it has spent most of its histo ...
(four Libertadores and one Intercontinental Cup), River Plate (four Libertadores and one Intercontinental Cup), Vélez Sársfield (one Libertadores and one Intercontinental),
San Lorenzo San Lorenzo is the Italian and Spanish name for Saint Lawrence, the 3rd-century Christian martyr, and may refer to: Places Argentina * San Lorenzo, Santa Fe * San Lorenzo Department, Chaco * Villa San Lorenzo, town and municipality in Salta P ...
(one Libertadores, one
Copa Mercosur The Copa Mercosur (, , "Mercosur Cup") was a Association football, football competition played from 1998 to 2001 by the traditional top clubs from Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay and Chile. The competition was created by CONMEBOL to generate ...
and one
Copa Sudamericana The CONMEBOL Sudamericana, also known as Copa Sudamericana (; ), is an annual international club football competition organized by CONMEBOL, the governing body of football in South America, since 2002. It is the second-most prestigious club com ...
),
Argentinos Juniors Asociación Atlética Argentinos Juniors is an Argentine sports club based in La Paternal, Buenos Aires. The club is mostly known for its association football, football team, which currently plays in the Argentine Primera División, and was reco ...
(one Libertadores) and Racing Club (one Libertadores and one Intercontinental Cup). The most successful Brazilian clubs are
São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...
(three Libertadores, one
FIFA Club World Cup The FIFA Club World Cup (FIFA CWC) is an international men's association football competition organised by the ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' (FIFA), the sport's global sports governing body, governing body. The compe ...
and two Intercontinental Cups), Santos (three Libertadores and two Intercontinental Cups), Grêmio (three Libertadores and one Intercontinental Cup),
Palmeiras The Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras (), commonly known as Palmeiras, is a Brazilian professional association football, football club based in the city of São Paulo, in the district of Perdizes (district of São Paulo), Perdizes. Palmeiras is ...
(three Libertadores, one
Copa Mercosur The Copa Mercosur (, , "Mercosur Cup") was a Association football, football competition played from 1998 to 2001 by the traditional top clubs from Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay and Chile. The competition was created by CONMEBOL to generate ...
and one
Recopa Sudamericana The CONMEBOL Recopa Sudamericana (), also known as Recopa Sudamericana or CONMEBOL Recopa, and simply as Recopa (, ; "Winners' Cup"), is an annual international club Association football, football competition organized by CONMEBOL since 1988. It ...
), Internacional (two Libertadores and one
FIFA Club World Cup The FIFA Club World Cup (FIFA CWC) is an international men's association football competition organised by the ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' (FIFA), the sport's global sports governing body, governing body. The compe ...
), Cruzeiro (two Libertadores),
Corinthians The First Epistle to the Corinthians () is one of the Pauline epistles, part of the New Testament of the Christian Bible. The epistle is attributed to Paul the Apostle and a co-author, Sosthenes, and is addressed to the Christian church in C ...
(one Libertadores and two FIFA Club World Cups),
Flamengo Clube de Regatas do Flamengo (; ), more commonly referred to as simply Flamengo, is a Brazilian multi sports club based in Rio de Janeiro, in the neighborhood of Gávea. It was founded and named after the Flamengo, Rio de Janeiro, Flamengo n ...
, (three Libertadores, one Copa Mercosur, one Copa de Oro, one Recopa and one Intercontinental Cup),
Vasco da Gama Vasco da Gama ( , ; – 24 December 1524), was a Portuguese explorer and nobleman who was the Portuguese discovery of the sea route to India, first European to reach India by sea. Da Gama's first voyage (1497–1499) was the first to link ...
(one Libertadores and one Copa Mercosur),
Atlético Mineiro Atlético, Spanish for ''athletics'', or Athletico in English, may refer to: Sports Teams Athletico *Athletico SC (Lebanon), a Lebanese football academy *Athletic Bilbao, or Atletico Bilbao, Basque students athletic club (also forming Athletic Cl ...
(one Libertadores and two
Copa Conmebol The Copa CONMEBOL () was an annual football cup competition organized by CONMEBOL between 1992 and 1999 for South American football clubs. During its time of existence, it was a very prestigious South American club football contest, similar to the ...
),
Fluminense Fluminense Football Club () is a Brazilian sports club based in the neighbourhood of Laranjeiras, in Rio de Janeiro, being the oldest football club in the state since its foundation in 1902. It competes in the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, th ...
(one Libertadores) and
Botafogo Botafogo (local/standard alternative Brazilian Portuguese pronunciation: ) is a beachfront neighborhood (''bairro'') in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is a mostly upper middle class and small commerce community, and is located between the hills of M ...
(one Libertadores and one Copa Conmebol).


Women's football

The Brazil women's team had little opportunity before 1980 to progress their skills. From 1940 to 1980, Women's football had been prohibited by law in Brazil, this did not stop the women from playing. It was believed that too much physical education in women could cause "masculinization". These women faced significant challenges in defying this ban on women in sports, women faced hostility and a lack of opportunity. The Brazil women's national team is a successful
women's football Women's football most often refers to: * Women's association football Women's football may also refer to: * Women's gridiron football * Women's Australian rules football * Ladies' Gaelic football * Women's rugby league * Women's rugby union ...
team. It was runner-up in the
FIFA Women's World Cup The FIFA Women's World Cup is an international association football competition contested by the senior list of women's national association football teams, women's national teams of the members of the FIFA, Fédération Internationale de Footb ...
of 2007, and won a silver medal at the
Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international Olympic sports, sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a Multi-s ...
in 2004, 2008 and 2024. In comparison, Argentina does not have a professional (or even semi-professional) women's football league; the members of the Argentina women's national football team are all amateur players despite their clubs often being affiliated with prominent men's professional clubs. Although the two teams usually have to battle for the top qualification spots for
CONMEBOL CONMEBOL ( ) or CSF (; ; ), is the continental governing body of football in South America and it is one of FIFA's six continental confederations. The oldest continental confederation in the world, its headquarters are located in Luque, Parag ...
when the World Cup qualification comes around, this rivalry does not provide the passion that men's matches encounter yet. Brazil won every game of the
Sudamericano Femenino The South American Youth Football Championship, also known as South American U-20 Championship (; ), branded as CONMEBOL Sub 20, is a South American football tournament organized by the CONMEBOL for South American national teams of men under age o ...
against Argentina until the 2006 edition, when Argentina finally beat them 2–0 in the final group stage, awarding Argentina the championship. Argentina did not participate in the 1991
South American South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...
competition and was second to Brazil in the following three tournaments. Beginning with the 2003 edition, both champion and runner-up qualified for the World Cup. As Argentina has not been past the group stages in the World Cup, the two teams have not met in the Olympic Football Tournament yet.


Notes


See also

*
Argentina–Brazil relations The Argentina–Brazil relationship (; ) is both close and historical, and encompasses the economy, trade, culture, education, and tourism. From war and rivalry to friendship and alliance, this complex relationship has spanned more than two ce ...


References


External links


Argentina vs. Brazil statistics
by
RSSSF The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation (''RSSSF'') is an international organisation dedicated to collecting statistics about association football. The foundation aims to build an exhaustive archive of football-related information from around ...

Brazil vs. Argentina rivalry
on Netvasco.com
Argentina vs. Brazil 5 September 2009 results


{{DEFAULTSORT:Argentina-Brazil football rivalry
Football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
Brazil national football team rivalries International association football rivalries Argentina at the 1974 FIFA World Cup Argentina at the 1978 FIFA World Cup Argentina at the 1982 FIFA World Cup Argentina at the 1990 FIFA World Cup Brazil at the 1974 FIFA World Cup Brazil at the 1978 FIFA World Cup Brazil at the 1982 FIFA World Cup Brazil at the 1990 FIFA World Cup Brazil at the 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup