The 2026 World Cup will define careers. These are the 26 players to watch

Who will be the star of the 2026 World Cup?

Sometimes, that star turn comes from a player who has already established himself as one of the best in the world. Sometimes, it comes from someone you’ve never heard of before.

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While it’s impossible to predict which player will explode from relative anonymity to world stardom over the next month, here are 26 players to watch at this year’s tournament including many who are looking for one last shot at glory as they likely make their final World Cup appearances.

Jude Bellingham, England

Bellingham is making his fourth major tournament appearance at the age of 22 after scoring two goals and adding an assist while starting all seven of England’s matches in Euro 2024. The Real Madrid attacking midfielder can be an odd fit at times with striker Harry Kane as they like to occupy the same parts of the pitch, but England will need Bellingham to be at his best if it wants to finally end its World Cup drought.

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Moisés Caicedo, Ecuador

The 24-year-old Chelsea midfielder is an integral part of an Ecuador team that allowed just five goals during its World Cup qualifying run. Ecuador easily made the 2026 World Cup and even finished ahead of Brazil in the CONMEBOL standings. Caicedo, who moved to Chelsea three seasons ago, has started 137 Premier League games over the past four seasons.

Alphonso Davies, Canada

When and how much will we see Davies at the 2026 World Cup? The left-sided fullback and midfielder suffered a hamstring injury in May while playing for Bayern Munich. Canada coach Jesse Marsch said that he’ll miss at least Canada’s first game against Bosnia-Herzegovina. The Canadians have a great chance to get to the knockout rounds for the first time ever thanks to a favorable group draw, but they’ll need Davies’ game-changing abilities.

Ousmane Dembélé, France

You’ve probably heard a lot about Dembélé’s teammate Kylian Mbappé. But Dembélé has a better argument as France’s best player heading into the 2026 World Cup. Yes, the attack will still revolve around Mbappé, though Dembélé is a more well-rounded player. He scored eight goals on 34 shots in just 11 Champions League appearances in 2025-26 as PSG won its second straight UCL title.

Jeremy Doku, Belgium

The Belgians are still led by 30-somethings Thibaut Courtois, Kevin De Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku. But Doku has emerged as the team’s best player and the bridge to the country’s next generation. Doku, 23, became an integral piece at Manchester City for now-former manager Pep Guardiola and will be the focal point of Belgium’s attack at the World Cup.

Edin Džeko, Bosnia-Herzegovina

The 40-year-old played this season in the Bundesliga 2 but is still a vital part of a Bosnia-Herzegovina team that shocked Italy in the UEFA playoffs to make the World Cup. Džeko scored six goals in nine World Cup qualifying games and will be asked to be the team’s top scoring option in the U.S. Don’t be shocked if Bosnia-Herzegovina make it to the knockout rounds. Group B is wide open with Czechia and Qatar alongside Canada as the Bosnians’ first three opponents.

Bruno Fernandes, Portugal

Yes, all the attention will be at Cristiano Ronaldo at this World Cup. But make no mistake, Fernandes is Portugal’s most valuable player and the team will go as far as he can take them up front. The Premier League player of the year set the single-season EPL assists record with 21-in-35 games for Manchester United. He plays exceptionally well with Manchester City midfielder Bernardo Silva, and their interplay with João Félix will help create space for Ronaldo … when he’s on the field.

Arda Güler, Türkiye

Do not overlook what Türkiye can do in the United States’ Group D. There’s a case to be made that the Turks are the best team in the group despite needing the UEFA playoffs to make the World Cup and Güler may be the best attacking player in Group D too. The young Real Madrid star had 4 goals and 9 assists in La Liga this season and also notched 2 goals in the second leg of Real’s quarterfinal Champions League loss to Bayern Munich.

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Erling Haaland, Norway

Haaland may be the best pure striker in the world and is making his World Cup debut. Norway didn’t get an easy draw, either. The Norwegians are in the toughest group of the tournament alongside France and Senegal. With eight third-place teams advancing, it’s likely we’ll see the Manchester City striker and his Arsenal midfielder teammate Martin Ødegaard in the knockout rounds. And depending on where the Norwegians slot into the Round of 32, they’re capable of a quarterfinal run.

Achraf Hakimi, Morocco

The Moroccans can no longer be considered World Cup dark horses after making it to the semifinals in 2022. The PSG right back is one of the best wide defenders in the world even though his 2025-26 season was disrupted by injury. A healthy Hakimi will help Morocco continue to be one of the most organized teams at the World Cup — and also a group that can make another knockout-round run.

Raúl Jiménez, Mexico

It’s probably the 35-year-old striker’s last World Cup hurrah. Jiménez came off the bench at the 2022 World Cup and failed to score, but he was still less than two years removed from a traumatic brain injury that necessitated emergency surgery for a brain bleed. Jiménez has scored 28 league goals over the last three club seasons for Fulham and started every match for Mexico at the 2025 Gold Cup, where he scored three goals.

Harry Kane, England

The Three Lions star has been prolific since moving to Bayern Munich. Kane scored 36 goals across 31 Bundesliga matches in 2025-26 to lead Bayern to a second straight league title. Kane carried England in 2022 with 2 goals and 3 assists over England’s 5 matches. This year, manager Thomas Tuchel has selected more direct wingers to the England squad with the hopes that his team’s play will replicate how Bayern Munich has played with Kane. There, Bayern’s wide players run deep to give Kane space to play and passing lanes for throughballs.

Joshua Kimmich, Germany

The German captain will be at right back for his country again. Kimmich, 31, is making his third World Cup appearance and primarily plays in central midfield for Bayern Munich. Kimmich is thrust into that spot thanks to being an incredibly well-rounded player. But he’d probably fit better in the midfield if Germany had other options at right back. The Germans are looking to get out of the group stage for the first time since the 2014 World Cup and have no excuse for a third straight three-and-out performance given that half the third-place teams will advance to the knockout rounds.

Kylian Mbappé France

A strong World Cup will be a nice rebound for one of the world’s most famous players. Mbappé went through a turbulent start to 2026. Tensions were high at Real Madrid and the team accidentally did an MRI on his right knee after Mbappé injured his left knee. There will always be questions about Mbappé’s willingness to track back and defend, and those aren’t going to go away at this World Cup. But France’s tactics are built with Mbappé’s tendencies in mind and few players are more dangerous on the break.

Lionel Messi, Argentina

What does the world’s most famous soccer player have in store for an encore after leading Argentina to its first World Cup since 1986? The 38-year-old Messi is still the focal point of Argentina’s attack, but he enters this World Cup after dealing with what Argentina said is hamstring fatigue, and he’s also been plying his trade in Major League Soccer. Can Messi be the first star playing club soccer in MLS to lead his country to a World Cup title and go out on top?

Luka Modric, Croatia

The seemingly ageless Modric is now 40 and certainly playing in his last World Cup. He transitioned from focal point to bench player for Real Madrid this past season, though he’s still the man who pulls the strings for Croatia. The Croatians made the World Cup Final in 2018 before making the semifinals again in 2022. A third straight semis appearance isn’t out of the equation — but it will be the team’s most difficult achievement to date.

Gilberto Mora, Mexico

The 17-year-old starred at the Under-20 World Cup for Mexico in 2025 with three goals in five games. He made his first appearance for the senior team that season and has already made eight total appearances. He should start as part of a midfield three in Mexico’s 4-3-3 formation and his World Cup debut will come just days after he re-upped with Club Tijuana amid interest from top European clubs.

Pedri, Spain

The latest star of Spain’s consistent ability to churn out midfield maestros, Pedri has been a key player for Barcelona as the team has won three of the last four La Liga titles. Pedri emerged as a starter for Spain as a 19-year-old at the 2022 World Cup and was a stalwart for the team that won Euro 2024 until he suffered a left knee sprain in the quarterfinals that knocked him out of the tournament.

Christian Pulisic, United States

Can Pulisic break out of the slumping club form he showed for AC Milan this season? After notching 20 combined goals and assists in each of the last two Serie A campaigns, Pulisic, 27, had just eight goals and four assists across 30 appearances in 2025-26. He also made just 18 starts. It’s hard to see the United States getting to the quarterfinals without a star turn from Pulisic.

Cristiano Ronaldo, Portugal

Ronaldo, 41, is making his sixth World Cup appearance and became the first man to score at five World Cups when he converted a penalty kick in 2022 for his eighth career goal in the tournament. However, all eight of those goals have come in the group stage. Ronaldo has, somehow, never scored in the knockout rounds. Will that change in what’s sure to be his last World Cup? That may hinge on how much he sees the field.

Mohamed Salah, Egypt

The longtime Liverpool star is leaving the club this summer after his worst season. Salah had just seven goals and seven assists; he hadn’t had fewer than 28 combined goals and assists in any of his eight previous seasons with the club. Can Salah, 33, summon enough to lead Egypt on a deep World Cup run? The Egyptians have an inviting group with Belgium, Iran and New Zealand and Salah enters this World Cup healthy unlike he did in 2018.

Son Heung-min, South Korea

The former Tottenham winger has played the last two seasons for LAFC in MLS and enters the World Cup on a goal drought. Son has eight assists in 13 MLS appearances this season but has failed to score a goal after notching nine in 10 appearances a season ago. If Son can rediscover his goal-scoring form, South Korea has a phenomenal chance of getting out of the group stage.

Federico Valverde, Uruguay

Real Madrid’s captain is the new focal point of the Uruguayan national team. Valverde will operate as part of a three-man midfield that also features Manchester United’s Manuel Ugarte and Tottenham’s Rodrigo Betancur. But Ugarte hardly saw any playing time this season at Man U and Tottenham was dysfunctional as it barely avoided relegation. If Valverde has to carry the midfield all by himself, Uruguay is destined for a short World Cup stay. If he has some help — and Darwin Nunez can score a goal or two — Uruguay can be a sleeper.

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Virgil van Dijk, Netherlands

Van Dijk’s form dipped in 2025-26 as Liverpool was unable to defend its Premier League title. The captain is still an undisputed starter for both club and country, however, and is integral to a Dutch defense that will need to be excellent for the Netherlands to be a serious contender.

Vinícius Júnior, Brazil

Viní Jr. will be playing for his former Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti and will be the team’s main goal-scoring threat as he occupies his usual spot down the right side. Can Ancelotti be the secret to a breakout performance at the World Cup? Despite being one of the best goal scorers in the world at Real Madrid, Viní Jr. has scored just eight goals in 47 appearances for the Brazilian national team.

Lamine Yamal, Spain

Don’t be surprised if you don’t see Yamal early in the World Cup. He’s been dealing with a hamstring injury and Spain is the massive favorite to win a group that includes Cape Verde, Saudi Arabia and Uruguay. The game against Uruguay isn’t until June 26. Missing a couple group games will likely take Yamal out of the running for an award like the Golden Boot, but it’s hard to see how anyone else usurps him for best young player at the tournament if Spain makes a deep run.