BRAZIL’S recent tournament woes continued on Sunday as they were dumped out of the Copa America.
It has led to a bizarre “cat curse” theory emerging as fans of the five-time world champions look back to a press conference from 2022 for answers to the series of unfortunate events.
The moment came at the Qatar World Cup when a cat jumped up on the table as Vinicius Jr faced the media.
The Real Madrid superstar found it funny, before Brazil‘s press officer astonishingly picked up the cat and threw it off the table.
The startled animal landed safely, before fans criticised the man’s treatment of the feline.
Since that strange moment, tournament exits and injuries have plagued Brazil over a dismal two-year period.
It has led members of the public to label it the “Canarinha”, the “curse of the cat”.
Brazil supporters believe they are unable to recover from the torrid run they are on.
They have suffered five different blows since the now infamous Vinicius presser in December 2022.
SunSport has taken a look at each one.
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World Cup exit
Days after the cat was thrown from the table, Brazil were eliminated from the World Cup.
Facing off against Croatia, Neymar had given the South Americans an extra-time lead with a superb slalom and finish.
But Bruno Petkovic then levelled with just three minutes remaining to send the match to penalties.
And Croatia won 4-2 on spot kicks as Rodrygo and Marquinhos crucially missed.
Neymar’s serious injury
In October last year, Neymar ruptured his ACL and meniscus in his left knee during a clash with Uruguay.
He was ruled out of the remainder of Al-Hilal’s season and faced a race to be fit for the Copa America this summer.
It was the most serious injury of his career to date, with the initial pain reducing him to tears.
U20 World Cup exit
Brazil seemed to be gathering momentum at the U20 World Cup last year when they thrashed Tunisia 4-1 in the last 16.
They were eyeing a satisfying tournament victory in the home of bitter rivals Argentina.
But it ended in humiliation as they threw away a 2-1 lead in extra time to lose 3-2 to Israel.
Failure to qualify for Olympic Games
Brazil have not even made it to the finals of the Paris Olympic Games after shock defeats in qualification.
After navigating their qualifying group, the last stage saw two of Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina and Venezuela advance to the Olympics in Paris.
A shock 1-0 defeat to Paraguay left Brazil in a perilous position, before they got back on track with a 2-1 win over Venezuela.
But a 1-0 loss to Argentina in February condemned them to being knocked out before the Games even begin.
Copa America exit
The most recent disappointment for Brazil came over the weekend as they were knocked out of the Copa America by Marcelo Bielsa’s Uruguay.
A goalless 120 minutes sent the game to penalties where 10-man Uruguay won 4-2 following misses from Eder Militao and Douglas Luiz.
It means Brazil have won just one of the last six Copa Americas to go with their 22-year wait for a sixth World Cup.