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Liverpool star Dominik Szoboszlai (center) and his Hungarian teammates won’t be at the World Cup.
KEYSTONE
The list is long—long enough to fill more than one team. Who can’t or isn’t allowed to play in the World Cup?
Several big names are missing from the XXL World Cup due to injuries. However, some soccer stars—especially from Italy—are forced to take a break during the tournament in the U.S., Mexico, and Canada even without injuries, because they missed the qualifiers or weren’t selected. A lineup of stars who are missing from the World Cup for various reasons.
The Squadra Azzurra’s goalkeeper has already played 82 international matches. His list of achievements is long: European champion, Champions League winner with Paris Saint-Germain a year ago, four-time French champion, and English Cup winner with Manchester City this year. However, the 27-year-old has yet to feature in a World Cup finals tournament.
After not being selected by Thomas Tuchel, the 33-year-old Englishman was not amused. “I was confident that, after the season I’ve had, I could have played a key role for my country this summer,” commented the Manchester United defender. The wife of the 66-time international also weighed in publicly, taking a jab at the German coach of the Three Lions: “It’s just a shame that you had to fight against a single opinion.”
Missing from England’s Euro squad: Harry Maguire.
Photo: Abbie Parr/AP/dpa
It hasn’t been a good soccer summer for the 32-year-old. His contract with FC Bayern expires on June 30. He doesn’t have a new employer yet. In 2016, Guerreiro won the European Championship with Portugal; he has 65 caps in total. This time, he isn’t on the roster.
He continues to be plagued by injuries. The 28-year-old Brazilian has already overcome two cruciate ligament tears and fought his way back at Real Madrid. In April, the defensive leader had to undergo muscle surgery in Finland. He’ll be sidelined for several months.
Two years ago, he was part of Spain’s European Championship triumph. This time, the defender—now 34 years old—is no longer on the roster. His World Cup appearances will remain at five, spread across the 2018 and 2022 tournaments. His contract with Real Madrid also expires at the end of the month after 13 years and countless successes.
The dream ended during the warm-up before the international match against Tunisia. “This is the hardest day of my career—and it will certainly take some time for me to get over this setback,” Baumgartner said after his injury. Muscle injury, surgery, extended break. A bitter blow for the 26-year-old, who had an extremely strong season with RB Leipzig and was set to inspire Austria in their group stage clash with world champions Argentina.
A goal in stoppage time also hit the captain of the Hungarian national team hard. “It hurts because we really wanted it,” explained the Liverpool FC pro and former RB Leipzig player after the 2-3 loss to Ireland. Hungary slipped to third place in the group, meaning the playoffs were out of reach and Szoboszlai and his teammates were out.
The FC Bayern pro had already missed the European Championship on home soil. And now the World Cup as well. Even before the cup semifinal against Bayer Leverkusen—which the eventual double winners went on to win—Gnabry suffered a torn adductor muscle. The 30-year-old attacking midfielder will not play his 57th international match for Germany at the World Cup.
Serge Gnabry is out of the World Cup due to injury. (File photo)
Image: Christian Charisius/dpa
His market value is currently estimated at around 140 million euros. This makes him one of the most expensive professional players in the world right now. Kvaratskhelia won the Champions League twice in a row with Paris Saint-Germain and was even voted Player of the Season in the competition last year. However, the 25-year-old failed to qualify for the World Cup with Georgia.
This time, it didn’t work out in the playoff against Sweden. The World Cup in Qatar is likely to have been the last for the 37-year-old Polish superstar striker, even if he continues to play for the national team. After the dramatic 2-3 loss to Sweden, the center forward said: “The worst feeling will be when we wake up tomorrow.” Things won’t be much better for him when the World Cup kicks off without the 167-time national team player, especially since he’s still without a new club following the end of his contract and tearful farewell at FC Barcelona.
143 caps for Uruguay, 69 goals. There were scandals along the way, too. “I would never turn down the national team if they need me—especially not with a World Cup just around the corner,” Suárez had emphasized. Marcelo Bielsa, whom the Inter Miami center forward and close friend of Lionel Messi had criticized after the 2024 Copa América, decided not to select Suárez.
Luis Suárez has not been selected for the World Cup by Uruguay coach Marcelo Bielsa.
Image: Keystone
10.06.2026, 17:32
10.06.2026, 17:36
