Venezuela vs Brazil LIVE score, VEN 0-1 BRA, FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifier: Raphinha goal keeps Selecao ahead in second-half, match updates

VEN sub: IN- Segovia OUT- Murillo 

Brazil leads Venezuela 1-0 as the second-half of their FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifier gets underway at the Monumental Stadium of Maturin. 

Raphinha’s freekick goal keeps Brazil ahead by a 1-0 scoreline against Venezuela at half-time. 

It is Rondon again as he tries to take a shot on the turn after getting the ball inside Brazil’s penalty area. But his effort is blocked. 

Rondon comes close to an equaliser - he is played a good ball over the top. He takes one touch to control the ball and then a second to get his shot away. Despite the close distance, Rondon fails to get a proper connection and the weak shot is straight at Ederson, who does well to hold on to the ball. 

Five minutes added at the end of the first-half!

Vinicius goes for the dummy, leaving Raphinha to take the shot. The Barcelona player takes his time and then shoots hard, aiming for the far-corner. The connection is great as the ball goes inside the net after taking a touch off the crosssbar. Romo had dived at full-stretch but had no chance to saving that rocket of a shot. 

Guimaraes is fouled right outside Venezuela’s penalty area and Brazil has a freekick in a dangerous position. Vinicius and Raphinha are standing over the ball. 

Ederson’s pass turns out to a tricky one for Aramburu, with Vinicius closing in. He prevents the Brazil forward from getting a touch with his clearance hitting the knee of teammate Romo. Savio latches on to the loose ball and tries to find the empty net but Navarro makes a goal-saving block to send it out of play. 

BRA booking: Vanderson hacks down Martinez with a reckless challenge and sees a yellow card. 

Igor Jesus looks to take a shot from the right side of the Venezuela box but Martinez puts in an inch-perfect challenge to send the ball out for a corner. 

VEN booking: Jhon Murillo gets the first booking of the match as he sees a yellow card.

Brazil’s defence is out of place again as Rondon tries to take a shot at goal from the edge of the box. The effort, however, is blocked just in time. Venezuela has been dangerous with its pressing and counter-attacks.

Ederson with a horrible mistake as sent the ball straight to a Venezuela player, who quickly passed the ball to Rondon inside the box. Rondon takes the shot but his effort is blocked as Brazil eventually clears the ball. That is a big escape for Brazil and relief for Ederson. 

Brazil had a lengthy spell of possession, trying to stitch an attacking move but Dorival Junior’s men fail to break Venezuela’s backline. 

Vinicius Jr comes close to scoring after getting at the end of a lobbed pass from Savio. He slides in to get a shot away but his effort hits the woodwork but the ball stays into play. Brazil keeps the attack alive and Gerson goes for goal next with a venomous shot from outside the box. However, Romo reacts well to make the save. 

Guimaraes spots Raphinha’s run and floats a cross inside the box from the middle of the park. Romo sees the danger and comes off his line to punch the ball away before Raphinha could get his head to it. 

Vinicius finds Guimaraes in space and passes the ball to him. Guimaraes goes for a shot from distance but Bello does well to block the effort with his body. 

Chance - Venezuela has a scoring chance of its own as Jhon Murillo gets the ball in a good position inside the box. He takes a shot at goal but Ederson spreads himself to make a crucial save. 

The replay shows that Murillo might have been in an offside position when he recieved the pass, which means that if he had found the net, it would not have counted. 

VEN sub: IN- Casseres OUT- Herrera

Gerson chests the ball to bring it under control and then shoots on the volley from the edge of the box. It is not the worst of shots but fails to hit the target. 

An early blow for Venezuela as it will lose midfielder Yangel Herrera due to an injury. Venezuela currently playing with 10 men. 

Chance - Vinicius Jr snatches the ball off Aramburu and races inside the Venezuela box. Romo comes off his line to narrow the angle but Vincius keeps the ball by taking it around the Venezuelan keeper. With the angle not favouring a shot, he squares the ball to Raphinha who was in a better position to shoot but the Barcelona forward’s first-time shot sails above the crossbar. 

Guimaraes attempts a first-time pass to Gerson, attempting to split open the Venezuelan defence but puts too much on his pass, sending the ball out of play for a goalkick. 

Vinicius Jr races away with the ball, thinking of starting a counter-attack but the referee stops the match because he was in an offside position when he received the pass. 

Venezuela has started the match well, taking the game to Brazil with the early press. 

The FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifier between Venezuela and Brazil is underway at the Monumental Stadium of Maturin.

Ederson(GK); Abner Vinicius, Gabriel, Marquinhos(C), Vanderson; Guimaraes, Gerson; Vinicius Junior, Raphinha, Savio; Jesus 

Romo (GK); Aramburu, Angel, Ramirez, Navarro; Herrera, Martinez; Bello, Savarino, Murillo; Rondon(C)

Played: 13

Brazil wins: 8

Draws: 4

Venezuela win: 1

Brazil will clash against Venezuela in a FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifying match at the Monumental Stadium of Maturin on Thursday.

Pressure on Brazil coach Dorival Júnior was eased in October after two wins in qualifying over Chile and Peru. And Vinícius wasn’t on duty in either of them. 

Fans will pay close attention to the winger’s performances against tough defenses at Venezuela and later against Uruguay, as he tries to reproduce for Brazil the same decisive performances for Real Madrid. 

Brazil once again will not have Neymar, who picked up a muscular injury earlier this month. There’s no big name as a center forward because Rodrygo is injured, too, and Endrick was not chosen. Vinícius will likely have to link up effectively with Raphinha and Luiz Henrique. 

Vinícius will face two teams that are in a degree of turmoil. Venezuela hasn’t won any of its last six qualifiers, and Uruguay coach Marcelo Bielsa is still under fire from former players for his handling of the team. 

Two wins for Brazil won’t secure the team a spot at the next World Cup just yet, but they will give fans and players some reassurance after a turbulent year.