Vinicius Junior, Brazil rally for 1-1 World Cup draw vs. Morocco in Meadowlands opener

Andy Clayton, New York Daily News on Jun 13, 2026

Published in Soccer

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NEW YORK — The only real heavyweight battle of this World Cup group stage produced an entertaining, if unsatisfying, 1-1 draw at the Meadowlands in East Rutherford, N.J., on Saturday evening.

Brazil, ranked No. 6 in FIFA’s latest world rankings, rallied to earn the point against Morocco (ranked No. 7) on a moment of sheer brilliance from Vinicius Junior late in the first half.

It marked the first of eight games to be played at MetLife Stadium (including four more group stage matches) — temporarily renamed New York New Jersey Stadium for the duration of the tournament — and was the best game of this North American World Cup to date in terms of the strength of the two teams.

One result of this new oversized 48-team tournament is fewer matchups as riveting as this one.

It was the Atlas Lions with the early pressure in a game that began with 88-degree temperatures — a bit of a relief from the back-to-back 90-plus days that hit the city in previous days — and the team that ultimately produced the game’s opening goal.

Ismael Saibari split the Brazilian defense off a perfect pass from the center of the field from Brahim Diaz in the 21st minute. He raced straight down the middle and found the back of the net with a perfect chip past a charging Alisson Becker just before the opening half’s ad-driven hydration break.

The sea of canary yellow clad fans that filled the majority of the seats in the New Jersey swamplands didn’t have to despair too long, though, as Brazil found the equalizer just 11 minutes later.

Vini Jr. — a perfect name for today’s Jersey hero — ripped a shot from the left of the goal box into the top right corner of the net. Morocco’s goalkeeper Yassine Bounou had no chance against the Real Madrid superstar.

No winner could be found on this day, although Brazil began to control the tempo in the second half.

It ended as a back-and-forth affair with Brazil barely out-possessing the North Africans, 51%-49%. Carlo Ancelotti’s team had five shots on goal, compared to 3 for Morocco. Both teams finished above 85% in passing accuracy.

The two teams had plenty on the line here at the Meadlowlands.

Brazil, the mighty five-time champions, have lived on reputation for much of the past decade, but haven’t lifted the trophy since 2022. Since then, only one semifinal appearance for The Selecao, and that was the humiliating 7-1 loss to Germany on home soil in 2014. Only disappointment has followed, including back-to-back quarterfinal exits in Russia 2018 and Qatar 2022.

The North Africans are here to prove that their shocking run to the semifinals four years ago — the first African team to reach the final four at a World Cup — was no fluke. And they did a fine job of proving they have the ability to have a long North American summer.

The announced attendance was a capacity 80,663, a little under 2,000 less than full capacity for the Giants and Jets as seats had to be yanked out down low to fit the regulation soccer field into MetLife Stadium.

Both teams return to action on Friday for much easier draws in Group C play. Brazil faces Haiti (Ranked No. 83) in Philadelphia in its second game, while Morocco heads to Boston to face 40th-ranked Scotland.

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