October 24, 2026
On Friday, Brazilian star Neymar announced his support for right-wing Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, just two days before the second and decisive round of the presidential elections scheduled for Sunday, which is witnessing a heated competition between him and the current leftist president, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
This announcement came via a video clip posted on the Instagram platform, in which the Brazilian national team’s all-time top scorer appeared alongside the pro-Bolsonaro representative, Nicolas Ferreira. During the video, Ferreira asked Neymar a question, saying: “What was your shirt number when you were playing for Barcelona? The number was 11. And how much is 11 plus 11?” Neymar then pointed with his fingers to the number 22, which is the electoral symbol assigned to Flavio Bolsonaro on the ballot paper, while the prominent representative on the parliamentary right commented by saying: “It is not about politics, we are only talking about football.”
This position comes as an extension of the player’s previously declared political orientations, as Neymar previously supported Flavio’s father, the former far-right president Jair Bolsonaro, justifying this by their sharing “similar values,” while the Brazilian star remained silent about the election campaign throughout the current year before his last appearance.
It is noteworthy that Neymar concluded his international career with the national team last July following the loss to Norway in the World Cup, while he continues to play his football career at the club level with the Brazilian club Santos. These developments come at a time when opinion polls show a strong closeness and statistical tie between the candidates before voters go to the polls next Sunday.
