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Although the 2026 World Cup will be played in an expanded format of 48 teams, the list of participants will be without some of the most famous names in world football. The absences are not only related to injuries, but mainly to the failures of several important national teams in qualifying.
The play-offs brought sensational eliminations. Denmark was defeated first by Scotland in the group and then by the Czech Republic on penalties, remaining out of the World Cup. This translates into the absence of many players who are active in Serie A, such as Rasmus Højlund, Morten Frendrup, Gustav Isaksen, Frederik Sørensen, Viktor Nelson and others.
Disappointment also for Poland, a national team traditionally associated with the Italian championship, with names like Piotr Zielinski, Nikola Zalevski and Mateus Ziołkovski. Serbia also remained outside, leaving players like Dušan Vlahović, Strahinja Pavlović, Lazar Samardžić and Filip Kostić at home.
Meanwhile, Zambo Anguisa's Cameroon, Edon Zhegrova's Kosovo (eliminated by Turkey in the play-offs), and Ukraine with Artem Dovbik, Ruslan Malinovski and Andrei Lunin failed to secure a place in the tournament.
One of the most notable absences is that of Robert Lewandowski. The Polish striker thus loses the opportunity to participate in another World Cup, which is expected to be the last of his international career. At the age of 37, he has hinted that he may retire from the national team.
Nigeria, despite their great potential, has also failed to qualify again, leaving out Victor Osimhen and Ademola Lukman. A paradoxical situation for one of the most talented teams in Africa.
Hungary continues its longest absence from the World Cup since 1986, despite featuring Dominik Soboszlai and Milos Kerkez, key players for Liverpool. The Hungarian team was eliminated in the group stage.
However, many well-known stars have been left out of the tournament. In goal, names such as Gianluigi Donnarumma (Italy), Jan Oblak (Slovenia), Andre Onana (Cameroon) and Giorgi Mamardashvili (Georgia) stand out.
Other teams also missing are Khvicha Kvaratskhelia (Georgia) and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Gabon).
In addition to the eliminated teams, several stars will not be present for other reasons. Rodrigo is expected to miss out due to injury, while Neymar may not be included in Brazil's roster by coach Carlo Ancelotti.
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