FIFA World Cup rosters: Neymar makes Brazil’s 26-man squad; Germany squad named
The big story on Monday was whether the former Barca and PSG superstar would make the squad, and he did indeed make Carlo Ancelotti’s list
By
Francesco Porzio
May 21, 2026
at
12:20 pm ET
•
12 min read
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The road to the 2026 World Cup is almost over as the 48 teams that will participate in the most-awaited soccer tournament in the world are now in the process of announcing their rosters. Some big names have already been unveiled, and Neymar is one of the recent. Brazil coach Carlo Ancelotti named the 34-year-old superstar to the squad in the most anticipated part of his announcement on Monday.
“I want to be clear, clean and honest. He will play if he deserves to play,” Ancelotti stated of Neymar, who left Europe for an unsuccessful spell in Saudi Arabia in 2023 before returning to boyhood club Santos last year. “We have training and training to decide who will play. I have an idea of who could be the starting lineup at this moment, but we have to see how they train later, how they are prepared, what physical and mental condition they have to be in the starting lineup. I think it’s important not to set an expectation that someone on whether one plays. Each one (on the team) must prioritize to help the team win the cup. I only want players available to help the team win games.”
The Brazilian star wasn’t included in the recent round of games in March and the Italian manager never explained what his intention was ahead of the upcoming summer tournament. There were several doubts about his possible involvement in the tournament, but in the end, he was called up to be part of the roster led by the former Real Madrid coach. The whole country had been waiting for this moment, though opinions remained divided about the Santos striker, who returned to Brazil’s top flight in 2025 after leaving Al-Hilal. His spell in Saudi Arabia was disrupted by an ACL injury suffered shortly after his move from PSG, limiting him to just seven appearances in two years in the Saudi Pro League.
The associations that have yet to announce must provide FIFA with their final squads of between 23 and 26 players, including at least three goalkeepers. A player on the final list can be replaced by a player from the preliminary list in the event of a serious injury or illness no later than 24 hours before the team’s first match at the World Cup, while a goalkeeper in the final squad may be replaced by another goalkeeper from the preliminary squad in the event of a serious injury or illness at any time during the World Cup.
We’ll keep track of all the official squads for you as they get unveiled below.
Group A
Mexico: TBA
Korea Republic:
Goalkeepers:Song Bumkeun (Jeonbuk), Jo Hyeonwoo (Ulsan), Kim Seung-gyu (FC Tokyo)
Defenders: Jens Castrop (Borussia Monchengladbach), Lee Hanbeom (Midtjylland), Park Jinseob (Zhejiang FC), Lee Kihyuk (Gangwon), Kim Minjae (Bayern Munich), Kim Moonhwan (Daejeon), Kim Taehyeon (Kashima Antlers), Lee Taeseok (Austria Wien), Seol Youngwoo (Crvena Zvezda), Cho Yumin (Sharjah)
Midfielders: Lee Donggyeong (Ulsan), Hwang Heechan (Wolves), Yang Hyunjun (Celtic), Hwang Inbeom (Feyenoord), Lee Jaesung (FSV Mainz), Kim Jingyu (Jeonbuk), Eom Jisung (Swansea), Bae Junho (Stoke), Lee Kangin (PSG), Paik Seungho (Birmingham)
Forwards: Cho Guesung (Midtjylland), Son Heungmin (LAFC), Oh Hyeongyu (Besiktas)
Defenders: Alex Sandro (Flamengo), Bremer (Juventus), Danilo (Flamengo), Douglas Santos (Zenit), Gabriel Magalhaes (Arsenal), Ibanez (Al-Ahli), Leo Pereira (Flamengo), Marquinhos (PSG), Wesley (Roma)
Midfielders: Bruno Guimaraes (Newcastle), Casemiro (Manchester United), Danilo Santos (Botafogo), Fabinho (Al-Ahli), Lucas Paqueta (Flamengo)
Forwards:Endrick (Lyon/Real Madrid), Gabriel Martinelli (Arsenal), Igor Thiago (Brentford), Luiz Henrique (Zenit), Matheus Cunha (Manchester United), Neymar (Santos), Raphinha (Barcelona), Rayan (Bournemouth), Vinicius Jr. (Real Madrid)
Morocco: TBA
Haiti:
Goalkeepers:Johny Placide (Bastia), Alexandre Pierre (Sochaux), Josue Duverger (Cosmos Koblenz)
Defenders:Ricardo Ade (LDU Quito), Carlens Arcus (Angers), Martin Experience (Nancy), Jean-Kevin Duverne (Gent), Duke Lacroix (Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC), Wilguens Paugain (Zulte Waregem), Hannes Delcroix (Lugano), Keeto Thermoncy (Young Boys)
Midfielders: Leverton Pierre (Vizela), Danley Jean Jacques (Philadelphia Union), Carl Sainte (El Paso Locomotive FC), Jean-Ricner Bellegarde (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Woodensky Pierre (Violette), Dominique Simon (Tatran Presov)
Goalkeepers: Craig Gordon (Hearts), Angus Gunn (Nottingham Forest), Liam Kelly (Rangers)
Defenders: Grant Hanley (Hibernian), Jack Hendry (Al-Etiffaq), Aaron Hickey (Brentford), Dom Hyam (Wrexham), Scott McKenna (Dinamo Zagreb), Nathan Patterson (Everton), Anthony Ralston (Celtic), Andy Robertson (Liverpool), John Souttar (Rangers), Kieran Tierney (Celtic)
Midfielders: Ryan Christie (Bournemouth), Finlay Curtis (Kilmarnock), Lewis Ferguson (Bologna), Ben Gannon-Doak (Bournemouth), Billy Gilmour (Napoli), John McGinn (Aston Villa), Kenny McLean (Norwich), Scott McTominay (Napoli)
Forwards: Che Adams (Torino), Lyndon Dykes (Charlton Athletic), George Hirst (Ipswich), Lawrence Shankland (Hearts), Ross Stewart (Southampton)
Group D
United States: TBA
Australia: TBA
Paraguay: TBA
Turkiye: TBA
Group E
Germany:
Goalkeepers: Oliver Baumann (Hoffenheim), Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich), Alexander Nubel (Monaco)
Defenders: Waldemar Anton (Borussia Dortmund), Nathaniel Brown (Frankfurt), Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich), David Raum (RB Leipzig), Antonio Rudiger (Real Madrid), Nico Schlotterbeck (Borussia Dortmund), Jonathan Tah (Bayern Munich), Malick Thiaw (Newcastle)
Midfielders: Nadiem Amiri (Mainz), Leon Goretzka (Bayern Munich), Pascal Gross (Brighton), Jamie Leweling (Stuttgart), Lennart Karl (Bayern Munich), Jamal Musiala (Bayern Munich), Felix Nmecha (Borussia Dortmund), Alexander Pavlovic (Bayern Munich), Angelo Stiller (Stuttgart), Florian Wirtz (Liverpool)
Forwards: Maximilian Beier (Borussia Dortmund), Kai Havertz (Arsenal), Leroy Sane (Galatasaray), Denis Undav (Stuttgart), Nick Woltemade (Newcastle)
Forwards: Elias Achouri (FC Copenhagen), Khalil Ayari (Paris St Germain), Firas Chaouat (Club Africain), Rayan Elloumi (Vancouver Whitecaps), Hazem Mastouri (Dynamo Makhachkala), Elias Saad (Hannover 96), Sebastian Tounekti (Celtic)
Sweden:
Goalkeepers: Viktor Johansson (Stoke City), Kristoffer Nordfeldt (AIK), Jacob Widell Zetterstrom (Derby County)
Defenders: Hjalmar Ekdal (Burnley), Gabriel Gudmundsson (Leeds United), Isak Hien (Atalanta), Emil Holm (Juventus), Gustaf Lagerbielke (Braga), Victor Lindelof (Aston Villa), Erik Smith (St. Pauli), Carl Starfelt (Celta Vigo), Elliot Stroud (Mjallby), Daniel Svensson (Borussia Dortmund)
Midfielders:Taha Ali (Malmo), Yasin Ayari (Brighton), Lucas Bergvall (Tottenham), Jesper Karlstrom (Udinese), Ken Sema (Pafos), Mattias Svanberg (Wolfsburg), Besfort Zeneli (Union St-Gilloise)
Forwards: Alexander Bernhardsson (Holstein Kiel), Anthony Elanga (Newcastle United), Viktor Gyokeres (Arsenal), Alexander Isak (Liverpool), Gustaf Nilsson (Club Brugge), Benjamin Nygren (Celtic)
Defenders: Timothy Castagne (Fulham), Zeno Debast (Sporting), Maxim de Cuyper (Brighton), Koni de Winter (AC Milan), Brandon Mechele (Club Brugge), Thomas Meunier (Lille), Nathan Ngoy (Lille), Joaquin Seys (Club Brugge), Arthur Theate (Eintracht Frankfurt)
Midfielders: Kevin de Bruyne (Napoli), Amadou Onana (Aston Villa), Nicolas Raskin (Rangers), Youri Tielemans (Aston Villa), Hans Vanaken (Club Brugge), Axel Witsel (Girona)
Forwards: Charles de Ketelaere (Atalanta), Jeremy Doku (Manchester City), Matias Fernandez-Pardo (Lille), Romelu Lukaku (Napoli), Dodi Lukebakio (Benfica), Diego Moreira (Strasbourg), Alexis Saelemaekers (AC Milan), Leandro Trossard (Arsenal).
Egypt: TBA
Iran: TBA
New Zealand:
Goalkeepers:Max Crocombe (Millwall), Alex Paulsen (Lechia Gdansk, on loan from Bournemouth), Michael Woud (Auckland FC)
Defenders:Tim Payne (Wellington Phoenix), Francis de Vries (Auckland FC), Tyler Bindon (Nottingham Forest), Michael Boxall (Minnesota United), Liberato Cacace (Wrexham), Nando Pijnaker (Auckland FC), Finn Surman (Portland Timbers), Callan Elliot (Auckland FC), Tommy Smith (Braintree Town)
Midfielders:Joe Bell (Viking FK), Matthew Garbett (Peterborough United), Marko Stamenic (Swansea City), Sarpreet Singh (Wellington Phoenix), Alex Rufer (Wellington Phoenix), Ben Old (Saint-Étienne), Callum McCowatt (Silkeborg IF), Lachlan Bayliss (Newcastle Jets), Ryan Thomas (PEC Zwolle)
Forwards:Kosta Barbarouses (Western Sydney Wanderers), Eli Just (Motherwell), Jesse Randall (Auckland FC), Ben Waine (Port Vale), Chris Wood (Nottingham Forest)
Group H
Saudi Arabia: TBA
Uruguay: TBA
Spain: TBA
Cabo Verde:
Goalkeepers: Vozinha (Chaves), Marcio Rosa (Montana), CJ dos Santos (San Diego)
Defenders: Stopira (Torreense), Roberto Lopes (Shamrock Rovers), Joao Paulo (FCSB), Diney (Al Bataeh), Logan Costa (Villarreal), Steven Moreira (Columbus Crew), Wagner Pina (Trabzonspor), Sidny Lopes Cabral (Benfica), Kelvin Pires (SJK)
Goalkeepers: Patrick Pentz (Brondby), Alexander Schlager (RB Salzburg), Florian Wiegele (Viktoria Pilsen)
Defenders: David Affengruber (Elche), David Alaba (Real Madrid), Kevin Danso (Tottenham), Marco Friedl (Werder Bremen), Philipp Lienhart (Freiburg), Phillipp Mwene (Mainz), Stefan Posch (Mainz), Alexander Prass (Hoffenheim), Michael Svoboda (Venezia)
Midfielders: Christoph Baumgartner (RB Leipzig), Carney Chukwuemeka (Borussia Dortmund), Florian Grillitsch (Braga), Konrad Laimer (Bayern Munich), Marcel Sabitzer (Borussia Dortmund), Xaver Schlager (RB Leipzig), Romano Schmid (Werder Bremen), Alessandro Schopf (RZ Pellets WAC), Nicolas Seiwald (RB Leipzig), Paul Wanner (PSV Eindhoven), Patrick Wimmer (Wolfsburg)
Forwards: Marko Arnautovic (Red Star Belgrade), Michael Gregoritsch (Augsburg), Sasa Kalajdzic (LASK)
Jordan: TBA
Group K
Colombia: TBA
Portugal:
Goalkeepers: Diogo Costa (FC Porto), Jose Sa (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Rui Silva (Sporting CP); Ricardo Velho (Gençlerbirliği Ankara)
Midfielders: Ruben Neves (Al Hilal), Samuel Costa (Mallorca), Joao Neves (PSG), Vitinha (PSG), Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United), Bernardo Silva (Manchester City)
Forwards: Joao Félix (Al Nassr), Francisco Trincao (Sporting CP), Francisco Conceicao (Juventus), Pedro Neto (Chelsea), Rafael Leao (AC Milan), Gonçalo Guedes (Real Sociedad), Gonçalo Ramos (PSG); Cristiano Ronaldo (Al Nassr)
Defenders: Josko Gvardiol (Manchester City), Duje Caleta-Car (Real Sociedad), Josip Sutalo (Ajax Amsterdam), Josip Stanisic (Bayern Munich), Marin Pongracic (Fiorentina), Martin Erlic (Midtjylland), Luka Vuskovic (Hamburg)
Midfielders: Luka Modric (AC Milan), Mateo Kovacic (Manchester City), Mario Pasalic (Atalanta), Nikola Vlasic (Torino), Luka Sucic (Real Sociedad), Martin Baturina (Como), Kristijan Jakic (Augsburg), Petar Sucic (Inter), Nikola Moro (Bologna), Toni Fruk (Rijeka)
Forwards: Ivan Perisic (PSV), Andrej Kramaric (Hoffenheim), Ante Budimir (Osasuna), Marco Pasalic (Orlando City), Petar Musa (Dallas), Igor Matanovic (Freiburg).