São Paulo – Eight Brazilian football players naturalized as Emiratis have been called up to represent the United Arab Emirates national team in the upcoming Asian qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup. They will play against Iran in Tehran on the 20th and North Korea in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on March 25.
The players were called up by Portuguese coach Paulo Bento, who previously managed Cruzeiro in Brazil. They are forwards Bruno de Oliveira (Al Jazira), Caio Correia, Fabio de Lima, and Caio Lucas (Sharjah FC), left winger Jonatas Santos (Al Wasl), midfielder Luan Pereira (Sharjah FC), defender Lucas Pimenta (Al Wahda), and right-back Marcus Vinicius Meloni (Sharjah FC).
Jonatas Santos and Caio Lucas were called up to represent the national team for the first time. In an Instagram post, Santos said he arrived in the UAE five years ago and will give back “everything” he has received as a player and as a person. “The UAE can count on me to give 110% on the field to achieve the goals and dreams of our great nation,” he said. The athlete was revealed by FSA Esporte Clube, from Feira de Santana, Bahia state.
Caio Lucas, 30, left América de São José do Rio Preto, in São Paulo state, in the early 2000s to play for teams in Japan, Portugal, and the UAE. The UAE national team is currently in third place in Group A of the Asian qualifiers, with 10 points. They are behind Iran, with 16 points, and Uzbekistan, with 13, and ahead of Qatar (7 points), Kyrgyzstan (6), and North Korea (6).
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Translated by Guilherme Miranda
