The most pointed commentary on Neymar’s World Cup so far came not from a pundit but from the president. At a hospital ceremony in Belo Horizonte on Friday, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was discussing gender equality with a child when the boy named Neymar as Brazil’s finest footballer. “Neymar? He’s not even playing,” Lula replied, before delivering the line that instantly ricocheted across Brazilian and international media: “I saw something on the internet yesterday — Neymar is the first player in the world to be called up to the national team and work remotely. A home-office player.” The remark, delivered with a grin, drew laughter from the audience and quickly overshadowed the event’s official purpose.

Lula’s timing was precise. Hours later, Brazil were due to face Haiti in Philadelphia in their second Group C match, and once again Neymar was not on the team sheet. The 34-year-old forward, Brazil’s all-time record goalscorer, has been nursing a grade-two calf injury sustained on 17 May, the day before Carlo Ancelotti named his final World Cup squad. He missed the opening 1-1 draw with Morocco, watching from the bench in New Jersey, and the Brazilian football confederation (CBF) confirmed he would remain at the team hotel to continue his recovery rather than travel for the Haiti fixture. Ancelotti’s staff, Brazilian media report, are reluctant to rush him back and risk compromising his availability for the knockout rounds.

The president’s barb carried layers that went beyond a simple fitness update. Neymar publicly backed Jair Bolsonaro in the 2022 presidential election, and the yellow Seleção shirt became a partisan symbol during that campaign. Lula himself has form in this arena: during his first term, ahead of the 2006 World Cup, he asked then-coach Carlos Alberto Parreira whether Ronaldo was fat, a question that drew a sharp retort from the striker. This time, Lula added a futuristic coda — “any day now we’ll have to pick a Seleção by artificial intelligence, with 11 Pelés” — and earlier in the week he had joked about signing Lionel Messi for Brazil. Viewed from Brasília, the quips serve as a reminder that the presidency and the national team remain entangled in a country where football is never just a game.

On the pitch, the immediate consequence is clear. Brazil, five-time champions, need a victory against Haiti to steady a campaign that began with a disjointed draw against a well-organised Morocco. Neymar has not played for his country since a serious knee injury in October 2023, and his only training session with the full squad came on Wednesday. The medical staff’s three-week recovery window expired on Thursday, and while he has done ball work, he lacks match rhythm. The next checkpoint is the group-stage finale against Scotland in Miami on 24 June. Until then, the Seleção’s most famous player remains, in the president’s phrase, on remote duty.