Mexico announce 12-player list ahead of 2026 World Cup: What it means and what’s next

Mexico are one of the first national teams to make an official announcement regarding the composition of their squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Twelve players have been selected to begin preparations for the tournament.

This Tuesday, the Mexican Football Federation shared via its official social media accounts a list of players chosen by head coach Javier Aguirre to begin training ahead of the World Cup. May 6 has been set as the reporting date for this group, which will begin an intense five-and-a-half-week preparation period.

“On this list are 12 players from Liga MX clubs who are being considered for inclusion in the final roster for the 2026 FIFA World Cup,” the statement explained. “This list does not include the group of players based abroad, as they will be integrated into the final squad that will be submitted to FIFA on June 1.”

This means Liga MX clubs have agreed to release their players so that Aguirre can begin training a month earlier than what FIFA regulations require. As expected, clubs from other countries are not obligated to do the same, meaning the coach will, for now, have to work only with players competing in the domestic league.

In addition, those 12 players with a chance to make the World Cup are not the only ones called up by Aguirre. “There are eight players being monitored for the next World Cup cycle to strengthen the training group ahead of the preparation matches before the World Cup,” the statement added.

Mexico’s 12-player call-up list

While the list announced by Mexico this Tuesday is not binding—meaning not all players included will necessarily be part of the final 26-man World Cup roster—it offers a clear indication of Aguirre’s plans for the national team.

Below is the full list of players called up:

• Goalkeepers: Raul Rangel (Chivas), Carlos Acevedo (Santos Laguna)
• Defenders: Israel Reyes (America), Jesus Gallardo (Toluca)
• Midfielders: Luis Romo (Chivas), Erik Lira (Cruz Azul), Brian Gutierrez (Chivas), Gilberto Mora (Tijuana), Roberto Alvarado (Chivas)
• Forwards: Alexis Vega (Toluca), Guillermo Martinez (Pumas) and Armando Gonzalez (Chivas)

They are joined by eight young players being considered for the future of the national team: Oscar Garcia (Leon), Luis Rey (Puebla), Eduardo Aguila (San Luis), Jesus Gomez (Tijuana), Denzell Garcia (Juarez), Iker Fimbres (Monterrey), Jairo Torres (Juarez), and Kevin Castaneda (Tijuana).

Mexican stars playing abroad

While Aguirre’s preliminary list includes several standouts from Liga MX, a significant portion of Mexico’s top players are currently based abroad. Some of the players expected to be part of the final 26-man World Cup roster include Raul Jimenez (Fulham), Santiago Gimenez (AC Milan), Johan Vasquez (Genoa), Jorge Sanchez (PAOK), Cesar Montes (Lokomotiv Moscow), Obed Vargas (Atletico Madrid), Julian Quinones (Al-Qadsiah) and Luis Chavez (Dynamo Moscow).