The Best Players Not Going to the 2026 World Cup

The FIFA World Cup is, without question, soccer’s biggest stage, but there will be a few notable names missing out on the tournament this summer.

Qualification for the North American festivities drew to a close towards the end of 2025, with the six final spots up for grabs via the playoffs having been decided in March 2026.

Of course, there will be superstars on show in abundance, with legacies bound to be defined, carved, hindered and cultivated, such is the significance of the World Cup.

It’s an event you really don’t want to miss, and despite FIFA’s expansionist ideals, less than a quarter of the governing body’s member associations will be involved in North America. Plenty will be absent, including some high-profile stars.

Here are the best players who won’t feature at the 2026 World Cup.

Dominik Szoboszlai

Hungary has been a plucky opponent under Italian manager Marco Rossi, and it looked set to at least earn a playoff berth in UEFA’s qualifying process heading into last November’s break.

Its hopes were emboldened by a slender win over Armenia, with the Republic of Ireland visiting Budapest requiring a rare away victory to usurp its hosts. Liverpool midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai once again donned the Hungarian armband and looked a cut above, with Rossi’s men taking 1–0 and 2–1 leads in the first half.

A point was enough for Szoboszlai’s side, but Troy Parrott, the former Tottenham Hotspur striker now plying his trade in the Netherlands, scored twice inside the final ten minutes to secure one of the all-time great Irish triumphs. It headed to the playoffs at Hungary’s expense (losing to Czechia in the semifinal of its pathway), with Szoboszlai, a standout performer for Liverpool despite their woes this season, watching from home.

His nation still haven’t qualified for the World Cup since 1986.

Benjamin Sesko

We saw Benjamin Šeško on the international stage with Slovenia at Euro 2024, with his tournament defined by his failed one-on-one attempt to potentially stun Portugal in the round of 16.

World Cup qualifying was miserable for the raw Manchester United forward, with Slovenia eliminated from contention after losing 2–0 at home to Kosovo on the penultimate matchday.

There will be plenty more opportunities for Šeško to represent his country at the World Cup, but he’s not yet shown himself to be a striker who can inspire his team as an individual.

Bryan Mbeumo

Bryan Mbuemo — Mbuemo’s Cameroon were beaten in the CAF playoffs. | DANIEL BELOUMOU OLOMO/AFP/Getty Images

It was a disappointing break for Manchester United forwards last November, as Cameroon’s hopes of making the World Cup were dashed by the DR Congo.

Bryan Mbeumo’s side were given a lifeline despite finishing second in their qualifying group. As one of the four best-performing runners-up, it progressed into the playoff round but was beaten in its semifinal. DR Congo subsequently went on to beat Nigeria on penalties in the final, and qualify for the World Cup via the inter-confederation playoffs.

At least Mbeumo has already played for Cameroon on the grand stage. The winger played three times in Qatar, with the African side succumbing in the group. It was, however, involved in one of the games of the 2022 World Cup, drawing 3–3 with Serbia.

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia

Willy Sagnol’s Georgia was one of the stories of Euro 2024, with its impressive defensive discipline complemented by a pair of mavericks in attack.

Paris Saint-Germain’s Khvicha Kvaratskhelia led the way in Germany, and the dynamite winger enjoyed a standout conclusion to the 2024–25 campaign, helping PSG to Champions League glory.

However, ’Kvaradona’, as he became known thanks to his exploits in Naples, won’t be lighting up the North American stage this summer. Georgia was outmatched in its qualifying group, with Spain leading the way and Türkiye crucially beating them twice.

Dusan Vlahovic

Dušan Vlahović — Serbia underwhelmed in qualifying. | BEN STANSALL/AFP/Getty Images

Serbia has typically flattered to deceive at major tournaments, but it won’t even have the chance to make fools of everyone who would inevitably see the quality of its squad and pick it as the ’dark horse’ for the 2026 World Cup.

Serbia has made a long-awaited change in the dugout, with Dragan Stojković resigning last October and Veljko Paunović coming in. Some might argue that the level of talent Serbia boasts has long been overrated, with Dušan Vlahović, for example, not the striker many thought he’d evolve into after he switched Fiorentina for Juventus in 2023.

There are compatibility issues between Vlahović and Aleksandar Mitrović, with Stojković failing to stumble upon a formula that maximised both of his sharpshooters.

Serbia scored just nine times in eight qualifiers, with Vlahović scoring twice. It missed out on second place by a point to Albania.

Victor Osimhen

An African giant won’t be at the 2026 World Cup after losing to the DR Congo on penalties in the CAF playoff final.

Qualifying was a mess from start to finish, with managerial changes and boycotts breeding instability. Nigeria scraped into the playoffs after finishing behind South Africa in its qualifying group, a major underachievement in itself.

This Nigeria squad isn’t shy of talent, with striker Victor Osimhen the leading light. He may currently be plying his trade outside of Europe’s premier divisions, but he remains one of the continent’s finest centre-forwards.

With the Super Eagles also missing out in 2022, Osimhen will be 31 by the time he potentially makes his World Cup debut in 2030.

Ademola Lookman

Like his compatriot Osimhen, Atlético Madrid star Ademola Lookman won’t travel to North America this summer after Nigeria’s disastrous qualification campaign.

The tricky forward, who finished 14th in the 2024 Ballon d’Or following his exploits with Atalanta, will miss out on another opportunity to represent his country at the pinnacle of world soccer, Lookman’s energy and flair set to be sorely missed.

After an excellent start to life with Atléti following his winter move, the former England youth international could well have shone for the Super Eagles at the World Cup.

Serhou Guirassy

Guinea has never played at the World Cup and 2026 will be no different. Even the sharpshooting of Borussia Dortmund striker Sehou Guirassy couldn’t fire it to the tournament, with Guinea finishing fourth in its qualifying group despite a respectable 15-point haul.

Guirassy’s physicality will be absent at the World Cup, the Dortmund forward’s supreme aerial ability and general power having lit up the Champions League and Bundesliga in recent seasons. He was the joint-top scorer in the former during 2024–25 and only finished behind Harry Kane in the latter.

The ex-Stuttgart man, who played for France’s youth teams, was only able to muster a single goal in qualifying, however, and hasn’t been anywhere near as prolific on the international stage as he has in Germany.

Jan Oblak

A winless qualifying campaign meant Slovenia didn’t stand much of a chance of making it to its first World Cup since 2010, although Sweden finished below them in Group B and earned a playoff berth courtesy of its UEFA Nations League performance.

Slovenia’s absence this summer means one of the finest goalkeepers of his generation, Jan Oblak, may go his entire career without ever playing on soccer’s grandest stage.

He’ll be 37 by the time the next tournament rolls around in 2030, and while plenty of shot-stoppers have appeared at the World Cup well into their twilight, there have been signs of Oblak’s once freakish consistency dissipating somewhat in recent years.

Still, as long as he’s still around, Oblak will surely remain Slovenia’s No. 1 for the next World Cup cycle.

Sandro Tonali

Italy made unwanted history in March, becoming the first former world champion to miss out on three successive World Cups. After embarrassing 2018 and 2022 failures, humiliation peaked with its European qualifying playoff final defeat to Bosnia and Herzegovina.

After Norway bested Italy twice in qualifying to secure top spot in the group stage, the Azzurri was forced to contest another dreaded playoff for its World Cup return. After conquering Northern Ireland in its semifinal, the curse look set to be lifted—Sandro Tonali one of the scorers in a 2–0 win.

However, despite going one goal up against Bosnia and Herzegovina in the final, Alessandro Bastoni’s red card changed the game. Bosnia and Herzegovina equalized and ran the game to penalties, where it kept its cool to qualify and break Italian hearts.

Newcastle United’s Tonali is one of the leading names in a star-studded Azzurri roster and will now have to wait until 2030 for his first taste of the World Cup—providing Italy can end its drought.

Nicolό Barella

Nicolò Barella has never been to the World Cup. | Claudio Villa/FIGC/FIGC/Getty Images

One of Tonali’s midfield partners, Inter star Nicoló Barella is another awaiting his first shot at the World Cup. By the time the next tournament comes around, the Italian will be 33 years of age, and his influence will be waning.

Barella’s brilliance was not enough to clinch Italy its place this summer and the tournament will be worse off for the absence of the four-time world champions and one of its key playmakers.

He’s one of an array of high-profile Italians forced to watch events unfold from a distance, joining Inter teammates Bastoni and Federico Dimarco, as well as the likes of Manuel Locatelli and Riccardo Calafiori, on the absentee list.

Gianluigi Donnarumma

Italy’s Euro 2020 hero is another yet to play his first World Cup. Despite being one of the best three or four goalkeepers on the planet, Gianluigi Donnarumma will not take his place on the world stage following another Azzurri disaster.

Unlike during the Euros final with England, Donnarumma was unable to make the difference in the shootout with Bosnia and Herzegovina, failing to rebuff any of the four spot kicks he faced.

The Manchester City star will feature at a World Cup some day, but he’s being forced into an agonizing wait for his opportunity.

Robert Lewandowski

2026 offered Robert Lewandowski his final World Cup opportunity. Having only featured at one tournament previously—the most recent edition in Qatar—the Barcelona striker, who will be 38 in August, knew that this qualification campaign would be his last.

However, things ended in heartache for the legendary Poland international. Another contesting the European playoffs, Lewandowski scored in a semifinal comeback win over Albania, but couldn’t find the net as Poland slumped to a 3–2 defeat to Sweden in its final.

A sickening blow for Lewandowski in the dying embers of a glistening career for club and country.

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