Every Man Utd Player at the 2026 World Cup: Fixtures, Chances, Favorites

A dozen members of Michael Carrick’s roster will be duking it out at the World Cup this summer but much of the spotlight was initially stolen by the Manchester United players not jetting across the Atlantic.

Harry Maguire—and the rest of his relatives—made his feelings about a snub from Thomas Tuchel abundantly apparent on social media. Neither of United’s top scorers in the freshly concluded 2025–26 campaign, Bryan Mbeumo and Benjamin Šeško, will be taking part in the tournament either—although that is a consequence of international failings rather than any individual omission.

Notwithstanding any cutting tweets Maguire’s cousins conjure up over the summer, focus will soon shift to the Manchester United players actually taking part in the greatest spectacle soccer has to offer.

Argentina

Lisandro Martínez

Lisandro Martínez is going for the double. The 2022 winner is set to play an even larger role in Argentina’s attempts to defend its world title after serving as an able deputy for much of the campaign in Qatar.

Lionel Scaloni counted upon Martínez throughout the triumphant 2024 Copa América campaign yet “The Butcher” has largely been sheathed ever since. Across the past two years, injury has limited Martínez to just three caps.

Group Stage Fixtures

Argentina vs. Algeria—Tuesday, June 16 (9 p.m. ET)
Argentina vs. Austria—Monday, June 22 (1 p.m. ET)
Jordan vs. Argentina—Saturday, June 27 (10 p.m. ET)

Chances of Progression

Top Group: 72.57%
Round of 32: 96.86%
Round of 16: 63.84%
Quarterfinals: 46.25%
Semifinals: 31.14%
Final: 18.44%
Winner: 10.41%

All World Cup predictions are according to Opta.

Belgium

Senne Lammens

Senne Lammens may have impressed everyone with a remarkably assured set of performances across his debut season at Manchester United. The Premier League even officially voted him as the best signing of the year. However, he remains firmly behind Thibaut Courtois—arguably the best goalkeeper in any league—in Belgium’s pecking order.

Group Stage Fixtures

Belgium vs. Egypt—Monday, June 15 (3 p.m. ET)
Belgium vs. Iran—Sunday, June 21 (3 p.m. ET)
New Zealand vs. Belgium—Friday, June 26 (11 p.m. ET)

Chances of Progression

Top Group: 52.01%
Round of 32: 89.46%
Round of 16: 53.88%
Quarterfinals: 28.07%
Semifinals: 12.13%
Final: 5.25%
Winner: 2.17%

Brazil

Casemiro, Matheus Cunha

Casemiro is still technically a Manchester United player until June 30—even if he skipped the club’s final match of the season to get a headstart on his World Cup preparations. Matheus Cunha had the decency to travel to Brighton, watching a comfortable 3–0 win from the bench.

That was where Cunha found himself at the start of Michael Carrick’s tenure before Patrick Dorgu’s injury opened up a spot on the left wing. Once the Dane returned to full fitness, Cunha was once again demoted, offering up some nagging questions for the start of next season.

Group Stage Fixtures

Brazil vs. Morocco—Saturday, June 13 (6 p.m. ET)
Brazil vs. Haiti—Friday, June 19 (8:30 p.m. ET)
Scotland vs. Brazil—Wednesday, June 24 (6 p.m. ET)

Chances of Progression

Top Group: 60.66%
Round of 32: 96.72%
Round of 16: 61.46%
Quarterfinals: 37.84%
Semifinals: 22.18%
Final: 12.32%
Winner: 6.50%

Côte d’Ivoire

Amad Diallo

The last time Amad Diallo went on international duty, he returned to find that Ruben Amorim had been sacked in his absence. There is little danger of Carrick losing his freshly acquired post over the summer.

One of the few players to actually perform well under the Portuguese coach was in fine form for Côte d’Ivoire at the Africa Cup of Nations over the winter. Amad will be hoping to replicate those scoring exploits to help the Elephants advance beyond the group stage for the first time in its World Cup history.

Group Stage Fixtures

Côte d’Ivoire vs. Ecuador—Sunday, June 14 (7 p.m. ET)
Germany vs. Côte d’Ivoire—Saturday, June 20 (4 p.m. ET)
Curaçao vs. Côte d’Ivoire—Thursday, June 25 (4 p.m. ET)

Chances of Progression

Top Group: 10.17%
Round of 32: 64.19%
Round of 16: 24.04%
Quarterfinals: 7.79%
Semifinals: 2.46%
Final: 0.82%
Winner: 0.22%

England

Kobbie Mainoo, Marcus Rashford

Manchester United have boasted at least one player on every England World Cup roster since the nation’s first participation in 1950. It looked for a long time like Kobbie Mainoo would miss out on Tuchel’s squad before a late season surge inspired a change of heart for the German.

“It’s good to make the point I have nothing against Manchester United,” Tuchel smiled upon Mainoo’s first re-call in March. “It’s just to acknowledge the achievement of Manchester United, as a team.”

Group Stage Fixtures

England vs. Croatia—Wednesday, June 17 (4 p.m. ET)
England vs. Ghana—Tuesday, June 23 (4 p.m. ET)
Panama vs. England—Saturday, June 27 (5 p.m. ET)

Chances of Progression

Top Group: 67.46%
Round of 32: 96.38%
Round of 16: 68.91%
Quarterfinals: 47.88%
Semifinals: 30.31%
Final: 18.69%
Winner: 10.87%

Morocco

Noussair Mazraoui

Noussair Mazraoui has started twice as many games for Morocco (10) as Michael Carrick (five) this season. The versatile fullback may not be a favorite for United’s manager, but he is a nailed-on starter for an international team that is targeting another deep run after reaching the 2022 World Cup semifinals.

Group Stage Fixtures

Brazil vs. Morocco—Saturday, June 13 (6 p.m. ET)
Scotland vs. Morocco—Friday, June 19 (6 p.m. ET)
Morocco vs. Haiti—Wednesday, June 24 (6 p.m. ET)

Chances of Progression

Top Group: 27.86%
Round of 32: 88.79%
Round of 16: 44.67%
Quarterfinals: 22.70%
Semifinals: 10.28%
Final: 4.40%
Winner: 1.83%

Portugal

Bruno Fernandes, Diogo Dalot

“Confidence in football is not everything,” Bruno Fernandes once mused, “but almost everything.” There can be few players in the sport with more self belief than United’s universally revered playmaker.

The freshly crowned FWA and Premier League Player of the Season will be tasked with creating his typical torrent of chances for Roberto Martínez’s side. Supported by the Champions League-winning duo of João Neves and Vitinha, Fernandes won’t be playing those passes for their Paris Saint-Germain teammate Gonçalo Ramos, but the 41-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo.

Group Stage Fixtures

Portugal vs. DR Congo—Wednesday, June 17 (1 p.m. ET)
Portugal vs. Uzbekistan—Tuesday, June 23 (1 p.m. ET)
Colombia vs. Portugal—Saturday, June 27 (7:30 p.m. ET)

Chances of Progression

Top Group: 59.44%
Round of 32: 94.58%
Round of 16: 62.36%
Quarterfinals: 40.35%
Semifinals: 24.05%
Final: 13.26%
Winner: 7.18%

Türkiye

Altay Bayındır

It can be easily forgotten that Altay Bayındır started Manchester United’s first six Premier League games of the season. Amorim captured precisely why the Turkish shot-stopper didn’t retain his position for long when he came to the sweeping conclusion: “It’s hard to be a Manchester United goalkeeper in this moment.”

It’s also proven pretty hard for Bayındır to be Türkiye’s goalkeeper at the moment, with the 28-year-old set to play second fiddle to Galatasaray’s Uğurcan Çakır this summer.

Group Stage Fixtures

Australia vs. Türkiye—Sunday, June 14 (12 a.m. ET)
Türkiye vs. Paraguay—Friday, June 19 (11 p.m. ET)
Türkiye vs. USMNT—Thursday, June 25 (10 p.m. ET)

Chances of Progression

Top Group: 29.36%
Round of 32: 73.90%
Round of 16: 38.76%
Quarterfinals: 17.59%
Semifinals: 7.00%
Final: 2.88%
Winner: 0.97%

Uruguay

Manuel Ugarte

How much longer Manuel Ugarte can still be called a Manchester United player remains to be seen. While Casemiro has been reluctantly allowed to sail off into the sunset, the expectation is that his fellow South American midfielder will skulk out of the sidedoor.

The World Cup should provide Ugarte with a platform to attract some suitors after doing his best to diminish whatever reputation he had during his fleeting cameos for United.

Group Stage Fixtures

Saudi Arabia vs. Uruguay—Monday, June 15 (6 p.m. ET)
Uruguay vs. Cabo Verde—Sunday, June 21 (6 p.m. ET)
Uruguay vs. Spain—Friday, June 26 (8 p.m. ET)

Chances of Progression

Top Group: 18.96%
Round of 32: 83.67%
Round of 16: 38.74%
Quarterfinals: 20.28%
Semifinals: 10.13%
Final: 4.11%
Winner: 1.53%

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