Rodrygo said he will travel to the United States this week to watch some of the Seleção’s World Cup games while he keeps up daily treatment for the knee injury that ruled him out of the tournament. The 25-year-old said the plan is to support Brazil from around the competition, even if he cannot be part of it on the field.
The timing explains why his absence is still being searched now: the World Cup is underway, and Rodrygo is making himself visible at the same moment he is missing from the squad. He said watching the squad presentation knowing he was not in it was tough, but added that he has high hopes with Carlo Ancelotti in charge. That mix of disappointment and resolve has turned his trip into one of the clearer personal stories around the brazil squad for 2026 world cup conversation, even though he is not in the group.
Rodrygo said the injury struck in March and kept him out months before the squad was announced. He also said he had been through the entire qualifying cycle and the Copa América, which makes the omission land harder for him than a routine selection cut. The forward said wearing the Seleção Brasileira shirt is a sensation that is difficult to describe, and that he feels proud to be Brazilian and to support a team he sees as representing culture in a beautiful, magical, joyful, united and hardworking way.
He spoke with particular pain about the period around surgery, describing the week as one of suffering, sleepless nights, a lot of pain and the urge to vomit and faint. That injury also ended the path back to the tournament he had wanted to reach since 2022, when his last World Cup game ended against Croatia after Dominik Livakovic saved his penalty and Brazil went out at the quarter-final stage. Rodrygo said the setback brought immense sadness, but that support from Real Madrid, the CBF, the national team staff and the players helped turn one of the worst days of his life into a huge wave of support.
Rodrygo said he still believes more big moments are ahead of him. For now, the immediate picture is narrower: travel this week, more daily treatment, and a seat near Brazil rather than a place inside the squad. What remains unanswered is the recovery timetable, and that leaves his return to match action open even as his presence around the tournament begins now.
