Austria Announce Their 2026 World Cup Squad | OneFootball

After a long 28 years away, Austria are finally back at the World Cup. The last time they played in the tournament was back in 1998. They’ve gone through a dark period away from playing in soccer’s most prestigious event, so this is an exciting moment for the nation.

Led by Ralf Rangnick, the father of gegenpressing, Austria will be looking to make a run to the knockout stage. They’ll like their chances in a group with Argentina, Algeria, and Jordan.

They’ve just announced their 26-man squad to go to the World Cup. Let’s take a closer look at it.

Goalkeepers

The three keepers Austria have chosen for the World Cup are Alexander Schlager of RB Salzburg, Florian Wiegele of Viktoria Plzeň, and Patrick Pentz of Brøndby. They are the best Austria have at the moment and can do a job when called upon.

Schlager is expected to be the starting keeper at the tournament, and he is the most experienced one with 25 caps. Having played his entire career domestically, he knows about Austrian football inside out, and is a leader in the dressing room.

Pentz is a reliable backup, and with 18 caps, he is no stranger in the national team. He plays his club football in Denmark and has had some standout performances for his club.

Defenders

The most well known name on here is none other than David Alaba, who has won everything with Bayern Munich and Real Madrid. But there is no sweeter feeling than captaining your national team in a World Cup, and it’s something he’s dreamed of since he was a kid.

He was unable to feature in the Euro 2024 due to his long-term injury. Regardless, he was named as a “non-playing captain” for the team and was with them the whole time. Now that he is back fit and ready go, this is a massive boost for Austria.

Other well known names here are Tottenham center-back Kevin Danso and Mainz defender Stefan Posch, who can play both as a right-back and a center-back.

Philipp Lienhart is another solid center-back who’s done a decent job with Freiburg in Germany. So this is a very tough backline who can be hard to breakdown, even for a team with an attacking talent of Argentina.

Midfielders

In midfield, there is Marcel Sabitzer, who’s always so reliable whether it’s for club or country. But there is another name that’s stealing headlines lately: Carney Chukwuemeka, Sabitzer’s teammate at Borussia Dortmund.

Chukwuemeka is a young and promising midfielder born in Austria to Nigerian parents. His family moved to England when he was very young and he grew up playing for England youth teams. But Austria managed to recruit him recently and it’s a huge boost to the squad.

The 22-year-old ended up scoring on his debut against Ghana, and he is excited to contribute to a successful World Cup for Austria.

Konrad Laimer is another player who’s been doing well at club level. He’s always so reliable for Bayern Munich and is capable of playing both in midfield and defense. That’s key in tournaments, where games come thick and fast and fatigue can set in rather quickly. So you need a Swiss army knife type of players.

Xaver Schlager, Florian Grillitsch, and Christoph Baumgartner are other names that can play an important role in Austrian midfield.

Forwards

At age 37, Marko Arnautović is still here and he is ready to lead the line for Austria at the World Cup.

People thought he might be done after Euro 2020 but he is still doing his thing in Serbia with Red Star Belgrade. He’s also a lot mature now and is taking responsibility as a vice captain. He may not be able to play full 90 minutes every game, but he still has a lot to offer for this team.

If you think 6’4″ Arnautović is gonna look like a big, physical presence up front then wait until you see Saša Kalajdžić, who is standing at 6’7″.

Kalajdžić is coming off of a historic season at LASK, where he spent this season on loan from Wolves and helped them win a domestic double for the first time since 1965. He contributed with seven goals and nine assists, so this is a striker who can not only score goals, but also can provide service for others.

Then there is Michael Gregoritsch, who’s another tall striker standing at 6’4″. He spent first half of this season at Brøndby and the second half at Augsburg. He may not be a flashy forward banging in goals but he is a good sub that can come in and still do a decent job.

Overall, this is a solid squad and it’s definitely the best Austrian team in a long, long time.

With this team, they can realistically aim to finish second in their group and even win a knockout game. Reaching the Round of 16 or quarterfinals is definitely doable for Austria.

The Full Squad

Goalkeepers: Alexander Schlager (Red Bull Salzburg), Florian Wiegele (Viktoria Plzen), Patrick Pentz (Brøndby)

Defenders: David Affengruber (Elche), Kevin Danso (Tottenham Hotspur), Stefan Posch (Como), David Alaba (Real Madrid), Philipp Lienhart (Freiburg), Phillipp Mwene (Mainz), Alexander Prass (Hoffenheim), Marco Friedl (Werder Bremen), Michael Svoboda (Venezia)

Midfielders: Xaver Schlager (RB Leipzig), Nicolas Seiwald (RB Leipzig), Marcel Sabitzer (Borussia Dortmund), Florian Grillitsch (Braga), Carney Chukwuemeka (Borussia Dortmund), Romano Schmid (Werder Bremen), Christoph Baumgartner (Hoffenheim), Konrad Laimer (Bayern Munich), Patrick Wimmer (VfL Wolfsburg), Paul Wanner (PSV), Alessandro Schopf (Wolfsberger)

Forwards: Marko Arnautović (Red Star Belgrade), Michael Gregoritsch (Brøndby), Saša Kalajdžić (Wolves)