World Cup 2026: Which Bundesliga players will make it into the German World Cup squad?

Originally, Julian Nagelsmann wanted to nominate his squad on the 12th of May. This appointment was pushed back since Nagelsmann wanted to watch the final matches of the Bundesliga season first. The new date for the squad announcement will be the 21st of May, only a couple of days before the training camp begins.

This means, of course, that speculations about the potential squad are expected to go on for a couple of more days, and it will be really interesting how the squad is going to look like in the final version. The number of Bundesliga players will be especially interesting to watch since there are a couple of great players playing abroad at the moment. 

Goalkeepers: Tough competition in the Bundesliga

The situation around the goalkeepers for the World Cup squad is more or less Bundesliga focused. Marc-André ter Stegen is, after his injuries, definitely not an option; other players from abroad, like Bernd Leno or Feyenoord captain Timon Wellenreuther, don’t seem to be a serious option for Nagelsmann. Only Stefan Ortega could be a candidate for the spot as third goalkeeper, but he has little chance because of his playing time in Nottingham.

All three goalkeepers for the World Cup will therefore most likely be from the Bundesliga. It currently looks like Oliver Baumann from Hoffenheim is going to be the starter and Alexander Nübel (VfB Stuttgart) his substitute. It will be seen if Manuel Neuer could imagine a comeback for the World Cup, but for now, the chances for this scenario seem to be pretty low. It’s definitely more likely that the third goalkeeper will be one of Jonas Urbig (FC Bayern Munich), Finn Dahmen (FC Augsburg), or Noah Atubolu (SC Freiburg).

Fullbacks: Kimmich as a starter … and who else?

In the past years, there have been lots of struggles with German fullbacks. Originally, Nagelsmann wanted to play Kimmich in central midfield as he does in Munich, but the lack of internationally strong fullbacks resulted in Kimmich playing as the right fullback again. This will be the case at the World Cup, probably with Ridle Baku (RB Leipzig) or Josha Vagnoman (VfB Stuttgart) as a substitute, since Nnamdi Collins (Eintracht Frankfurt) is injured, and Benjamin Henrichs (RB Leipzig) was injured for a pretty long time.

On the left side, there are definitely plenty of better options for Nagelsmann. Even the spot in the starting eleven seems to be fully open at this moment in time. David Raum (RB Leipzig), Nathaniel Brown (Eintracht Frankfurt), and Maximilian Mittelstädt (VfB Stuttgart) are currently fighting for the World Cup ticket. The more experienced Robin Gosens (ACF Fiorentina) doesn’t look to have a chance here.

Centre Backs: Bundesliga players and international experience?

Julian Nagelsmann definitely has multiple strong options when it comes to the central defense. This is definitely a situation that every national coach would love to see. Two centre-backs are more or less safe and should probably start in every World Cup match, with Nico Schlotterbeck (Borussia Dortmund) and Jonathan Tah (FC Bayern Munich). It’s more or less the question of which players Nagelsmann wants to have on the bench for specific cases and match situations.

Antonio Rüdiger has been in the news lots of times recently, but not in a good way. His behaviour on and off the pitch has led to multiple discussions, and even Nagelsmann has sometimes had enough. There was even some sort of an ultimatum that Rüdiger needs to behave better if he wants to be with the national team, and it’s debatable if he did that, but his international experience can definitely help the team during such a tournament, and he has proved lots of time that he still has the quality to help in tight matches.

Now there are likely one or two more spots left and many different options. Actually, you can’t miss out on nominating Waldemar Anton after such a strong season in Dortmund. Especially his social skills and leadership could help the team a lot. On the other hand, players like Malick Thiaw (Newcastle United) or Yann Bisseck (Inter Milano) would earn a nomination too and we haven’t already talked about Robin Koch (Eintracht Frankfurt), Thilo Kehrer (AS Monaco), Matthias Ginter (SC Freiburg), Noahkai Banks (FC Augsburg), Jeff Chabot (VfB Stuttgart), Finn Jeltsch (VfB Stuttgart) or Karim Coulibaly (SV Werder Bremen) yet. This shows the incredible depth of high-quality players that Germany has in this position.

Central midfield: Which combination makes the most sense?

Despite the situation about Kimmich playing as a right back, the central midfield of the German national team looks not only promising, but also Bundesliga focused. Aleksandar Pavlovic (FC Bayern Munich) will most likely have a spot in the starting eleven if he stays healthy, which wasn’t always the case in the past. It’s Nagelsmann's big task now to find the best player to play along with him.

Two interesting options that should definitely be part of the World Cup squad are Felix Nmecha (Borussia Dortmund) and Angelo Stiller (VfB Stuttgart). Both played a strong season and have unique player profiles that could help a lot during such a tournament. Apart from those three top options, there are lots of others to fill the squad in this position. Robert Andrich (Bayer 04 Leverkusen), Leon Goretzka (FC Bayern Munich), Anton Stach (Leeds United), Tom Bischof (FC Bayern Munich), and Pascal Groß (Brighton & Hove Albion) are just a few of the many realistic options.

Offensive midfield: Germany’s strongest position?

If there is one position without any struggles and lots of options for Nagelsmann, then it’s the offensive midfield. With Jamal Musiala (FC Bayern Munich) and Florian Wirtz (FC Liverpool), two exceptional players can always shape a match and make the difference on the pitch.

Besides those two world-class players, Nagelsmann can choose from a wide range of other great players, and most of them from the Bundesliga. Serge Gnabry (FC Bayern Munich) will, unfortunately, miss the World Cup because of an injury, but Lennart Karl (FC Bayern Munich) could easily jump in and get rewarded for a strong first Bundesliga season.

Leroy Sané (Galatasaray Istanbul) could still become a game-changer in some matches and build a duo with Karl on the right wing. Karim Adeyemi (Borussia Dortmund) and Kevin Schade (FC Brentford) seem to have lower chances of receiving a call-up at the moment. For the left wing, Nagelsmann could end up with Jamie Leweling (VfB Stuttgart) and Said El Mala (1.FC Köln), who has proven to be a great substitute too. Additionally, Chris Führich (VfB Stuttgart) is more or less a need for the team if he continues to play on his current level.

The chances of Assan Ouédraogo (RB Leipzig), Nadiem Amiri (1.FSV Mainz 05), Paul Nebel (1.FSV Mainz 05), or Brajan Gruda (RB Leipzig) are therefore significantly lower without any more injuries.

Striker: Great player profiles, but only one is in great form

Multiple exciting player profiles, but only one player is in good form, and Nagelsmann doesn’t like him too much for the starting eleven. That’s unfortunately the current status of the German strikers. Nick Woltemade (Newcastle United) showed his potential many times, but became a substitute at his club and isn’t really playing at his best.

Kai Havertz (FC Arsenal) is dealing with injury after injury this season and is, therefore, a bit of a risk for such a tournament. Niclas Füllkrug (AC Milan) is having a tough season and has no real option for now. Perfect time for some Bundesliga striker, isn’t it?

Unfortunately, Nagelsmann doesn’t trust Undav to be his starter, and he doesn’t completely fit the playing style that Nagelsmann seems to prefer. Other than the current best German striker in the Bundesliga, other options could be Jonathan Burkardt (Eintracht Frankfurt), Tim Lemperle (TSG Hoffenheim), or Nicoló Tresoldi (Club Bruges), but all of them seem to be unlikely. It will be more interesting to see if Maximilian Beier (Borussia Dortmund) will finally make it to the World Cup after some strong performances in the past weeks.

How are Germany’s chances at the World Cup?

The German national team won’t be one of the big favorites. Experts and bookmakers currently see Spain and England as the two best teams. Afterwards, there are a couple of times directly behind them, and Germany is mentioned with outside chances too, besides France, Argentina, Brazil, and Portugal. 

The probability of Germany winning the World Cup is currently around 7,5 percent according to bookmakers. This means that Germany will have some outside chance in this tournament, which can lower the pressure on the team, too. This might help the young team to play freely and on their best level, like they did in the Euros 2024.

If Germany can unlock the potential of their squad and defend better than in some matches we’ve seen recently, the national team full of Bundesliga players can be a strong title contender again.

Before really talking about title dreams and so on, the hard work needs to be done. The group stage starts for Germany on the 14th of June against Curaçao, followed by matches against the Ivory Coast (20th of June) and Ecuador (25th of June). Afterwards, every football fan will see how strong Germany is again, or if the strike of negative World Cups continues for the world champion from 2014.