Qualifying for the 2025 World Cup is set to conclude in the coming months, meaning a number of Premier League stars could miss out on the tournament in America.
The 2026 World Cup is starting to take shape. Many countries from around the world have qualified for next summer’s tournament.
More participants are likely to join in the coming months as eligible campaigns are scheduled to end. England could become one of the newest teams to earn a ticket to America.
However, with only a few qualifying rounds remaining, some countries are at great risk of being eliminated altogether, which could very well mean some of the Premier League’s biggest and best teams will be sitting on their sofas watching the tournament from home in 2026.
That being said, mirror football will feature some big names who may miss out on eligibility.
read more: The role of Man United’s forgotten failure in Cape Verde’s historic World Cup qualificationread more: Anthony Elanga slams Sweden’s World Cup hopes as they take huge hit
Sweden
Sweden has had an absolutely disastrous qualifying campaign so far. Under coach John Dahl Tomasson, they are at the bottom of Group B in the European qualifying round. They have only one point from four games, but suffered an embarrassing defeat to Kosovo in their most recent encounter. Their form is puzzling, especially considering the brilliant talent at their disposal on offense.
Liverpool star Alexander Isak is undoubtedly one of the best strikers in Europe, and Victor Gokeres is also a great option. Anthony Elanga and Dejan Kulusevski are both key players for club and country, but they may not feature in next summer’s World Cup.
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cameroon
Cameroon, who have relocated to Africa, have been embroiled in perhaps one of the biggest qualifying stories of all time, but unfortunately for them the story is not about their World Cup spot. Cameroon was defeated by Cape Verde and automatically fell.
All matches were played within the group and they are in second place within the group. This means Cameroon risks being one of the lucky second-place teams. And if they fail, the likes of Brian Mbeumo and Carlos Baleva could miss out.
Italy
Italy knows very well that it will not be able to participate in the World Cup. The four-time champions have failed to qualify in each of the last two tournaments and are in danger of scoring an unwelcome hat-trick. Gennaro Gattuso’s side are second in their group behind Norway with three games remaining. If you fail to defeat your rival, you will likely fall into the playoffs, but there is no guarantee that you will qualify for the tournament.
And if they fail, many Premier League stars will miss out. Goalkeepers Gianluigi Donnarumma and Guglielmo Vicario are part of Italy’s squad, but Federico Chiesa and Riccardo Calafioli will be among the disappointing stars. Destiny Udoghi and Sandro Tonali will also be absent.
Slovenia
Mbeumo may stay at home, but Manchester United teammate Benjamin Sesko could also be among the players missing out on the World Cup, with Slovenia also suffering a poor showing in qualifying.
They are in 3rd place in their group with no win in 4 races. Slovenia only has two games left to turn things around and secure a spot, so they really need Sesko at bat to do that.
Nigeria
Like Cameroon, Nigeria is under intense pressure to miss out on the World Cup. They currently sit third in their qualifying group, three points behind Benin with one game remaining.
They need a win in their final game – ironically against Benin – and hope South Africa drop points to give them a chance of automatic qualification. And if they can achieve that, Fulham duo Calvin Bassey and Alex Iwobi will breathe a huge sigh of relief.
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