Robert Lewandowski, widely regarded as one of the finest forwards of the last decade and a half, will not feature at the 2026 World Cup hosted by Canada, the United States and Mexico. The 37-year-old striker, currently playing for Barcelona and with 89 international goals to his name, was unable to guide Poland through their play-off final, where they suffered a 3-2 defeat in Stockholm against Sweden.
Having represented his country at previous tournaments, Lewandowski’s international future now appears uncertain. He captained Poland at the 2018 World Cup but failed to score as they finished bottom of their group. Four years later in Qatar, he netted twice and helped his side reach the last 16, where they were eliminated by France.
During the 2026 qualifying campaign, Lewandowski scored four goals in Group G. However, Poland ended three points behind the Netherlands and were then knocked out by Sweden in the decisive play-off match, ending their hopes of qualification.
European stars miss out after disappointing campaigns
Italy goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma will also be absent from the tournament after another qualification failure for his national side. Now at Manchester City, following a £26m move from Paris St-Germain in September, Donnarumma had enjoyed a strong season at club level, having helped PSG secure the Champions League title the previous year.
Despite his heroics at Euro 2020, where he was named player of the tournament, Donnarumma could not prevent Italy’s elimination. The four-time world champions lost 4-1 on penalties to Bosnia-Herzegovina, extending their absence from the World Cup.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, who played a key role in Paris St-Germain’s Champions League triumph and scored in their 5-0 victory over Inter Milan in the final, will also not be present. The Georgian forward, who finished 12th in the 2025 Ballon d’Or standings, endured a difficult qualification campaign with his national team, who collected just three points in a group featuring Spain, Turkey and Bulgaria.
Hungary’s Dominik Szoboszlai is another notable absentee. The Liverpool midfielder has impressed this season, including scoring from long distance, but his country narrowly missed out. Hungary appeared on course to progress before conceding twice in injury time against the Republic of Ireland in their final group match, a result that denied them a play-off place.
African contenders fall short despite strong individual performances
Serhou Guirassy, one of the most prolific forwards in European football in recent seasons, will not take part either. The Borussia Dortmund striker has scored 62 Bundesliga goals across the past three campaigns and led the Champions League scoring charts in 2024-25 with 13 goals. Nevertheless, Guinea were eliminated early in qualifying, finishing fourth in their group with four wins and three draws from ten matches.
Victor Osimhen also misses out after Nigeria’s unsuccessful campaign. The striker, who previously helped Napoli to the Serie A title before moving to Galatasaray, where he scored 26 goals in 30 matches to secure the Turkish championship, could not influence the decisive moment.
Nigeria finished just one point behind South Africa in their initial group after drawing five of their ten matches. They were given another opportunity through the play-offs but were beaten on penalties by DR Congo, with Osimhen already off the pitch by the time of the shootout.