Loss of auditory function can be successfully treated with cochlear implant (CI) therapy. Whereas the majority of CI users acquire good functional hearing, about one third report poor outcome. Auditory loss leads to important brain neuroplastic changes. The way the brain adapts to auditory deprivation could explain some of the variability in CI therapy. This study looks for predictive factors of CI success based on preoperative brain MRI. We included 60 French-speaking adults (mean age: 57±18 y.; range 18-88 y) with acquired bilateral deafness. In addition to behavioral measures, we acquired preoperative brain MRI data, including a 3D T1 for grey matter (GM) anatomy, and diffusion imaging (DI) for white matter (WM) integrity. The 3D-T1 and DI data were analyzed using Freesurfer and FSL, and in-house software (Elicopy), respectively. Speech perception was measured at 6 months post-CI. Results show that cortical thickness of the left superior temporal sulcus was associated with better pre- and postoperative speech perception. In addition, speech perception at follow-up correlated negatively with right lateral occipital GM volume. In contrast, audiovisual speech perception post-CI correlated positively with GM volume of left rostral middle frontal and superior parietal regions, areas that are involved in cognition, language processing and visual motion perception. DI results revealed a correlation between mean FA of the left uncinate fasciculus with hearing outcomes. We conclude that pre-operative MRI can highlight brain structural features that predict the way the brain will adapt to auditory rehabilitation with a CI.