Published 18 May 2026
Ralf Rangnick has named his 26-man squad for the FIFA World Cup 2026, as Austria 🇦🇹 prepare for their first World Cup appearance in 28 years.
Goalkeepers: Patrick Pentz, Alexander Schlager, Florian Wiegele
Defenders: David Affengruber, David Alaba, Kevin Danso, Marco Friedl, Philipp Lienhart, Phillipp Mwene, Stefan Posch, Alexander Prass, Michael Svoboda
Midfielders: Christoph Baumgartner, Carney Chukwuemeka, Florian Grillitsch, Konrad Laimer, Marcel Sabitzer, Xaver Schlager, Romano Schmid, Alessandro Schöpf, Nicolas Seiwald, Paul Wanner, Patrick Wimmer
Forwards: Marko Arnautović, Michael Gregoritsch, Sasa Kalajdzic
The most welcome return is David Alaba, back in the fold after a lengthy injury absence.
The squad also reflects Austria's strong Bundesliga presence, with more than half the players drawn from German football.
Rangnick has built the national team in his own image — high intensity for the full 90 minutes, vertical and aggressive, but always playing out from the back. The spine of the team is clear: Schlager and Seiwald as a double pivot, Laimer capable of operating as a full-back or midfielder, Sabitzer cutting in from the left, and Baumgartner as the creative force in the number ten role after an excellent season at RB Leipzig. Up front, all-time leading scorer Marko Arnautović leads the line with 47 international goals to his name.
Group J
Drawn into Group J alongside Argentina , Algeria and Jordan, Austria will fancy their chances of progressing from the group stage — and on current form, that confidence looks justified.
