Brazil faces Scotland in Miami, by the 2026 World Cup, but Brazilian football had a connection with Scotland over 130 years ago — well into the country's own history of the sport. The name behind this is Charles Miller, the man known today as the 'father of Brazilian football'.

Who was Charles Miller?

Charles Miller was born in 1874 in São Paulo, son of John Miller, a Scottish immigrant to Brazil, and Carlota Fox, a Brazilian of English descent. At ten years old, he was sent to study in England, at the Banister Court School, in Southampton, where he met football and quickly distinguished himself.

The return to Brazil and the founding of the first clubs

In 1894, when he was around twenty years old, Miller returned to São Paulo after a decade in England. In his luggage, the two balls and a copy of the official regulations of the Hampshire Football Association. It is said that his own father, upon seeing him disembark at the port of Santos, asked what that was he was carrying. "My diploma", he would have replied. "Your son has graduated in football."

The sport was completely unknown in Brazil at the time. The local population preferred rowing and horse racing, and saw that round ball with a certain suspicion — some even confused it with the equipment used in other fashionable physical activities. The few curious ones were mostly other British expatriates, linked to the railways and trade.

The first official football match in Brazil

It was in this scenario that Miller organized what would have been the first official football match in Brazil, on April 14, 1895: the São Paulo Railway team, the British company where he worked, against the Companhia de Gás team, also formed by British expatriates in São Paulo. The game took place in Várzea do Carmo, on an improvised field in the Brás neighborhood.

Decades later, in an interview with Gazeta Esportiva, Miller would tell that the first task of the day was to chase away the oxen of a transportation company that were peacefully grazing in the field. The sport was completely unknown in Brazil at the time, but Miller worked tirelessly to popularize it.

The legacy of Charles Miller

Today, Brazil is one of the main teams in the world, but the legacy of Charles Miller is fundamental to the history of Brazilian football. He brought the sport to the country and worked tirelessly to popularize it. Brazil faces Scotland in Miami, by the 2026 World Cup, but Brazilian football had a connection with Scotland over 130 years ago.

Last result: Brazil 1-2 Norway (2026-07-05). Recent form (last 5): 4W-0D-1L (LWWWW, most recent first). Next fixture: vs Australia (away, 2026-09-25).