Twelve Manchester United players confirmed for World Cup 2026 as Maguire and Shaw miss out

Twelve Manchester United players will represent their countries at the 2026 World Cup across Mexico, Canada and the United States after the global squad deadline closed, with Harry Maguire and Luke Shaw the most prominent names to miss out from Thomas Tuchel’s England selection.

Maguire had played a key role in United’s revival under interim manager Michael Carrick but was not included in Tuchel’s squad. Shaw’s omission was equally eyebrow-raising: the left-back started every Premier League game of the season, making him only the fifth outfield United player to achieve that feat, yet still found himself left out by the England head coach.

The headline surprise among those who did make it is Tyler Fletcher, who earned a late Scotland call-up after Billy Gilmour was ruled out through injury. Fletcher joins a United contingent that spans nine nations and includes a mouth-watering club clash when Brazil face Morocco on June 13 — a fixture that pits United teammates Matheus Cunha and Noussair Mazraoui against each other.

The tournament gets underway on Thursday, June 11.

Manchester United’s World Cup squad

Goalkeepers: Senne Lammens (Belgium), Altay Bayindir (Turkey)

Defenders: Noussair Mazraoui (Morocco), Lisandro Martinez (Argentina), Diogo Dalot (Portugal)

Midfielders: Manuel Ugarte (Uruguay), Bruno Fernandes (Portugal), Kobbie Mainoo (England), Tyler Fletcher (Scotland)

Forwards: Matheus Cunha (Brazil), Amad (Ivory Coast), Marcus Rashford (England)

Among those missing out entirely, Andre Onana, Patrick Dorgu, Bryan Mbeumo and Benjamin Sesko will sit out the tournament because their nations — Cameroon, Denmark, Cameroon and Slovenia respectively — did not qualify. Matthijs de Ligt was ruled out through injury, while Leny Yoro, Joshua Zirkzee, Mason Mount, Ayden Heaven and Diego Leon were all passed over by their respective national team coaches.

Those players not travelling to North America will benefit from an extended summer break before returning for pre-season next month.