Liverpool Players in the 2026 World Cup: Key Highlights

The World Cup is coming back to North America, bigger and louder than ever, and Liverpool’s fingerprints will be all over it.

Forty-eight nations. Three host countries. A swollen group stage that kicks off on Thursday, June 11. Scattered across the USA, Canada and Mexico, the tournament’s opening act will quickly turn into a roll call of familiar Anfield faces chasing the game’s biggest prize.

All times below are BST.

Alisson Becker (Brazil)

For Alisson Becker, this is no dress rehearsal. The Brazil No.1 heads into his third World Cup as the man expected to stand between the five-time champions and chaos.

He is likely to be the first Liverpool player to feature at this expanded edition, anchoring a Brazil squad named by Carlo Ancelotti that also includes former Red Fabinho, now at Al-Ittihad. The expectation is simple: Brazil do not travel to tournaments to make up the numbers.

They start in Group C with a heavyweight test against 2022 semi-finalists Morocco, a side that ripped up reputations in Qatar and will not be overawed by the famous yellow shirt.

Brazil’s fixtures (Group C)

• v Morocco – June 13, 11pm
• v Haiti – June 20, 1.30am
• v Scotland – June 24, 11pm

After Morocco, Haiti offer a very different challenge before a final group clash that will carry a little extra intrigue on Merseyside: Andy Robertson’s Scotland standing in the way of Brazilian momentum.

Wataru Endo (Japan)

Wataru Endo arrives at this World Cup on the back of a race against time. A foot injury with Liverpool in February threatened his place, but he forced his way back to fitness and into the heart of Japan’s plans – not just as a starter, but as captain.

"It wasn't an easy way to recover from the injury but I believed in myself to make this happen and will keep working hard to get fit for the games," he said after the squad announcement. That line tells you everything about his mindset.

Endo knows this stage. He played four times at the last World Cup, helping the Samurai Blue escape a brutal group containing Spain and Germany before a penalty shootout defeat to Croatia ended the run in the last 16.

This time, Group F hands him a reunion-heavy schedule: Japan against the Netherlands, Tunisia and Sweden – four Liverpool teammates scattered across the other three nations, four emotional subplots waiting to unfold.

Japan’s fixtures (Group F)

• v Netherlands – June 14, 9pm
• v Tunisia – June 21, 5am
• v Sweden – June 26, 12am

The opener against the Dutch throws Endo straight into a battle with familiar faces in midfield. From there, the group only gets trickier.

Cody Gakpo, Ryan Gravenberch and Virgil van Dijk (Netherlands)

The Netherlands arrive with a strong Anfield flavour. Virgil van Dijk, the captain and defensive pillar. Cody Gakpo, the forward who lit up the last World Cup. And Ryan Gravenberch, stepping into this arena for the first time.

Gravenberch is the only member of the Dutch Liverpool trio yet to experience World Cup football. For Van Dijk and Gakpo, Qatar still stings: a quarter-final exit to eventual champions Argentina on penalties after a ferocious contest.

Gakpo’s emergence there was one of the stories of the group stage. He scored in all three of the Netherlands’ group games, a surge of form that helped pave the way for his move from PSV Eindhoven to Anfield a month later.

Now, the Oranje open against Endo’s Japan, then roll into meetings with Sweden and Tunisia in Group F. Every game carries a Liverpool subplot, every duel a training-ground familiarity turned into a World Cup test.

Netherlands’ fixtures (Group F)

• v Japan – June 14, 9pm
• v Sweden – June 20, 6pm
• v Tunisia – June 26, 12am

For Van Dijk, this is another chance to marshal a deep run. For Gakpo, another global stage to attack. For Gravenberch, the first taste of the tournament he has watched from afar.

Alexander Isak (Sweden)

Alexander Isak had to wait for this. Sweden missed out in 2022, and a generation of players watched the World Cup from the sofa. The Newcastle forward, now a key figure for his country and a Red in this context, finally gets his shot.

Sweden did not stroll into 2026. They came through the play-offs, their route shaped by UEFA Nations League ranking rather than a straightforward qualifying campaign. It sharpened them. It also framed this tournament as an opportunity they cannot waste.

Graham Potter took over as head coach on a short-term basis in October, a cautious appointment at first glance. By March, his deal had been extended to 2030. The federation liked what they saw.

Sweden’s fixtures (Group F)

• v Tunisia – June 15, 3am
• v Netherlands – June 20, 6pm
• v Japan – June 26, 12am

Isak’s first World Cup brings him up against teammates old and new: a clash with the Dutch, then a final group game against Endo’s Japan that could decide everything.

Alexis Mac Allister (Argentina)

Alexis Mac Allister walks into this World Cup with a medal already in his pocket and a target on his back. Argentina are not just defending champions; they are chasing history.

Only two nations have ever retained the men’s World Cup: Italy in 1934 and 1938, Brazil in 1958 and 1962. Since then, every champion has fallen short. Argentina want to become the third to go back-to-back.

They will again be led by Lionel Messi, heading into his sixth World Cup at 38. One more chapter, one more tilt at immortality, one more tournament with Mac Allister woven into the midfield fabric.

In 2022, Mac Allister – then at Brighton & Hove Albion – started the tournament on the bench. Argentina lost their opener 2-1 to Saudi Arabia, a shock that shook the football world. From the second game on, he started every match. Six straight starts. A quiet, relentless influence on the road to glory.

Now, Lionel Scaloni’s side open Group J against Algeria, then face Austria and Jordan.

Argentina’s fixtures (Group J)

• v Algeria – June 17, 2am
• v Austria – June 22, 6pm
• v Jordan – June 28, 3am

The path looks manageable on paper. World Cups are never played on paper.

From Alisson’s command in Brazil’s goal to Mac Allister’s poise in Argentina’s midfield, from Endo’s leadership of Japan to the Dutch core and Isak’s long-awaited debut, Liverpool’s players are scattered across a tournament that has never been bigger.

The stage is set. The only question now is which of them will still be standing when North America crowns its champion.