India, July 6 -- Neymar announced his retirement from international football after Brazil's FIFA World Cup 2026 campaign ended in a painful 2-1 defeat to Norway in the round of 16, marking another heartbreaking exit for one of the country's most gifted but most debated bunch of footballers.

The 34-year-old, who had long carried Brazil's hopes of a sixth World Cup title, was emotional after the match and suggested that his journey with the national team had reached its end. Speaking to geTV after the defeat, Neymar said: "I tried, I tried. Now it's over. I started here, I closed it here."

The reference was to the MetLife Stadium, the venue where Neymar had made his senior Brazil debut in 2010 against the United States. Sixteen years late...