Tom Brady hit the 2026 FIFA World Cup on July 1 as a spectator, and he’s already making his predictions known.
The seven-time Super Bowl champion watched Brazil face Morocco alongside Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin and the rest of the Fanatics crew. Brady posted about it on Instagram afterward. “What an atmosphere yesterday for the FIFA World Cup with Michael Rubin and the whole Fanatics family,” he wrote. “We saw a great match between Brazil and Morocco and I think both might find their way into the knockouts!”
That’s a bold call. Brazil is a five-time World Cup winner. Morocco made history at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar by becoming the first African nation ever to reach the semifinals. Brady is backing two powerhouses from completely different corners of the world. That’s kind of what makes this tournament so cool.
The 2026 edition is a genuinely historic one. It’s the first World Cup ever with 48 teams. Host cities span the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Brady showing up in person says something. This tournament is pulling in everyone.
But the predictions weren’t really Brady’s main point.
Through Card Vault by Tom Brady – his sports trading card and collectibles platform – he’s been making a simple case: live sports can’t be duplicated. You can stream the game or watch the replay. None of it gets you to what it actually feels like to be in the building.
“At Card Vault by Tom Brady we always talk about how sports are truly the one thing that you can’t replicate,” Brady wrote on Instagram. “The energy in the stadium yesterday was a perfect example of that. So proud to see how passionately fans from around the world are showing up for this tournament.”
That hits differently coming from Brady. He’s won seven Super Bowls. He’s played in front of some of the loudest crowds in NFL history. He knows exactly what high-stakes energy feels like from the inside. He’s calling the World Cup crowd something special. From him, that’s not casual praise.
He also gave a direct shoutout to FIFA President Gianni Infantino by name. “Gianni Infantino and the team at FIFA have truly outdone themselves and are still just getting started,” Brady wrote. High praise for an organization delivering the biggest World Cup in history on North American soil.
Fanatics is well connected across the licensed sports merchandise world. Having Brady at the match alongside Rubin and the Fanatics crew makes total sense. Their brands run in the same lane.
Brady said he hopes to catch more games in person. “In the meantime I’ll be glued to Fox Sports,” he wrote. He already calls NFL games there as a broadcaster. This is genuinely his world.
Brady’s going to have some serious bragging rights. He backed two teams from opposite ends of the soccer world. Don’t count him out.
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