Brazilian forward Neymar Jr has once again further added to speculation regarding the conspiracy rumours of his continued mysterious absences around his sister’s birthday with his injury meme joke once again viral
Neymar recently missed Santos’ latest match against Corinthians, just 24 hours before his sister’s birthday on March 11, citing “discomfort”.
Fans have quickly pointed out the recurring trend, with his absences dating back to 2015, with critics and even former teammates joking about the strange pattern.
What is the Neymar Jr ‘sister birthday curse meme joke’ and injury record history as footballer again gets injured on Rafaella Santos’ birthday date
Neymar Jr. sits out match against Corinthians
Neymar Jr. opted to sit out the recent match against Corinthians as Santos lost 2-1 in the Campeonato Paulista. He had previously left the pitch against Red Bull Bragantino after reportedly feeling discomfort. Before the match, medical tests confirmed he was still experiencing pain, and he had no choice but to sit out.
https://twitter.com/FootballTalkHQ/status/1899163967358226562
Neymar addressed his absence in a social media post following the match, explaining:
All I wanted was to be on the field and help my teammates, but I felt it again”.
Despite his frustration, Neymar promised to return stronger and stated:
Unfortunately it’s part of football… it didn’t work out today but we’ll come back even stronger to fight for our goals!”
Neymar Jr. and his continued absence around his sister’s birthday
https://twitter.com/BoazFCB/status/1899015974319239595
Neymar’s recent injury coincided with his sister Rafaella Santos’ birthday on March 11 yet again, sparking conspiracy rumours. Notably, Neymar Jr. has missed games near this date multiple times from suspensions to muscle injuries. Fans have long speculated about the connection, and even jokingly suggested Neymar “plans” his injuries. Even his former teammate Sergio Ramos once joked about needing to “negotiate” Neymar’s sister’s birthday if he joined Real Madrid. Given below is a list of Neymar’s continued absence around his sister’s birthday:
| Year | Match Missed | Reason for Absence |
| 2015 | Rayo Vallecano | Suspended |
| 2016 | Eibar | Suspended |
| 2017 | Deportivo | Muscle injury, missed one game |
| 2018 | Missed rest of the season | Metatarsal injury |
| 2019 | Out for three months | Foot injury |
| 2021 | Missed 11 matches | Adductor pain |
| 2023 | Missed rest of the season | Ankle injury |
| 2024 | Missed rest of the season | Knee injury |
| 2025 | Santos | Discomfort, missed match |
Neymar Jr. bio
Neymar da Silva Santos Junior is a professional footballer and one of Brazil’s most famous stars. He started out his career at Santos before eventually moving to Barcelona and later PSG. Neymar has won multiple league titles throughout his career as well as the Champions League title. He has so far scored 79 goals in 128 appearances for Brazil. Following an unsuccessful spell at Al-Hilal, Neymar recently rejoined Santos in 2025.
Neymar shares a close relationship with his sister and even has tattoos of each other on their arms. Neymar has a tattoo of Rafaella on his right arm, while he appears on her left arm. Rafaella Santos herself has a large social media fanbase with over 5.9k followers on Instagram. Over the years, Santos has been a big supporter of her brother’s career and often shares her support publicly.
Santos Manager Pedro Caixinha speaks out
Following the news about Neymar’s injury, Santos manager Pedro Caixinha dismissed rumors about resting Neymar Jr. to prepare for Brazil’s World Cup qualifiers. He insisted that the forward was dealing with real discomfort and couldn’t take risks. Caixinha stated:
When a player has discomfort that could lead to injury, I won’t risk him”.
He further added:
It was my request, and he agreed to be with the group even though he knew he wouldn’t be able to play, because he’s a different, enlightened player, who has fantastic energy, and he suffered a lot for not being able to participate in the game.”