Brazil x Norway: The team had the least possession of the ball in the last 60 years

Norwegians touching the ball and the Brazilians running after it. That was the case for most of the match that ended with a 2-1 victory for Norway over Brazil, eliminated in the round of 16 of the World Cup.

The team coached by the Italian Carlo Ancelotti had just 34% of the ball possession, the lowest rate for the team since there are records, according to data from the 1966 opta.

Brazil had 351 fewer passes than the opponent throughout the game. He even finished more times, 14 to 9, but only four were on target. The Norwegians were more accurate, as they hit five.

The data alone is not enough to explain the defeat, although the 34% possession only highlights the poor performance. The list of Brazil's five lowest possessions in World Cups since 1966 is accompanied by more successes than frustrations.

In any case, none of them are below 40% and the context of the matches explains the data, after all, in some of these games the Brazilians built an advantage on the scoreboard and started to defend themselves.

The second worst rate is 40%, a figure from the 1998 semi-final, when the team drew 1-1 with the Netherlands and won on penalties. Next is the 41% possession repeated in 1982, against Argentina in the second phase, and in the 2002 semi-finals and final, against Turkey and Germany, respectively - all three matches ended in Brazilian triumph.

What is certain is that the fragility of Brazilian football was exposed, especially due to the lack of talent in the midfield. Bruno Guimarães, a player whose responsibility is to distribute the game, had little positive impact on the match. His passes were not very productive in terms of offense, especially after he wasted the penalty when the game was tied and lost confidence.

Norway, on the other hand, has Martin Odegaard, a type of player that Brazil lacks and endowed with game vision and technical ability to execute the plays he envisions. Arsenal's captain, he actively participated in the English title campaign and the Champions League runner-up.

See Brazil's worst ball possession rates since 1966

- 34% - Brazil 1 x 2 Norway (8th 2026) 44% - Brazil 3 x 1 Argentina (Second phase 1982)

Without Germany, Brazil remains at the top of the list of World Cup champions

Source: CNN