Uruguay at the FIFA World Cup 2026

History

Uruguay are two-time FIFA World Cup winners, claiming the inaugural title in 1930 on home soil and the 1950 title in Brazil, where their 2-1 victory over the hosts in the deciding match - known as the Maracanazo - stands as one of the most iconic moments in football history. They also finished fourth in 1954 and 1970. Uruguay have appeared at 14 World Cups in total. Beyond the World Cup, they hold a record 15 Copa America titles, cementing their status as one of South America's great football nations. Their consistent presence among the world's top 20 sides reflects a footballing culture that has consistently produced elite talent relative to their population of just under 3.5 million.

Qualification

Uruguay qualified automatically for 2026 by finishing fourth in the CONMEBOL South American qualifying round-robin, which involved all ten South American nations. Under Marcelo Bielsa, appointed in 2023 and only the second non-Uruguayan to coach the national side, La Celeste secured their place with a decisive 3-0 home victory over Peru in the penultimate qualifying round. The campaign was notable for victories over both Brazil and Argentina, underlining Uruguay's competitive strength in the region. Bielsa has indicated he plans to leave his post after the World Cup concludes.

Preparation

Uruguay were eliminated in the group stage after a 1-0 defeat to Spain on June 26 (Estadio Akron, Guadalajara). They finished 3rd in Group H with 2 points (D-D-L), behind Spain (7 pts) and Cape Verde (3 pts). Muslera's error cost them the Spain match; Ugarte sustained a confirmed ACL tear in the same game. Araújo and De Arrascaeta missed all three matches. Marcelo Bielsa's contract expired with the World Cup; he departed having said he left 'nothing' for Uruguayan football.

Latest news

Manuel Ugarte undergoes successful knee surgery

· injuries

Manchester United confirmed on 15 July 2026 that Manuel Ugarte underwent successful surgery for the ACL injury sustained in Uruguay's World Cup group-stage match against Spain. He has now begun the rehabilitation stage of his recovery under the club's medical and performance staff, and is expected to miss the majority of the 2026-27 season.

Diego Forlán appointed Uruguay interim head coach

· coach

The AUF appointed Diego Forlan, 47, interim head coach on 12 July 2026, succeeding Marcelo Bielsa, who resigned after the group-stage exit. Contract runs through March 2027, after which the AUF will decide whether to extend it. Forlan also coaches Uruguay's Under-20 side at the World Cup in Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan. His prior head-coaching experience is limited to spells at Peñarol and CA Atenas.

Ugarte confirmed with ACL tear; Manchester United midfielder faces 9-12 month recovery

· injuries

MRI confirmed Manuel Ugarte suffered a complete anterior cruciate ligament tear in his left knee during the Spain match (stretchered off at 44'). The non-contact injury came as his knee buckled in play. Manchester United said assessment continues to determine treatment and rehabilitation timescale. Estimated recovery: 9-12 months, with possible meniscus involvement that could extend the timeline.

Uruguay 0-1 Spain: eliminated from World Cup as Muslera error and Canobbio red card seal dismal campaign

· matches

Uruguay eliminated from World Cup after 1-0 loss to Spain at Estadio Akron (26 June). Álex Baena's 42nd-minute goal came after Muslera fumbled into his own net; Muslera requested halftime substitution, replaced by Rochet. Ugarte stretchered off at 44' with a knee injury. Canobbio sent off in 90+4'. Araújo and De Arrascaeta were unused substitutes. Uruguay finished 3rd in Group H with 2 points.

Bielsa departs Uruguay after group stage exit, says he left 'nothing' for Uruguayan football

· coach

Marcelo Bielsa's contract, valid through the World Cup, expired with the group stage exit. Post-match he said: 'What I gave Uruguayan football is nothing, because any contribution a coach makes over three years is futile without positive outcomes.' He insisted 'we deserved seven points and only got two' but took full responsibility. He had pre-announced his departure before the tournament started.

Giménez expected to start vs Spain; Núñez likely to replace Viñas in attack

· matches

Pre-match previews (June 24-25) indicate José María Giménez is set to return to the starting XI against Spain on June 26, having sat out both group matches. Darwin Núñez is likely to replace Federico Viñas in attack. Araujo and De Arrascaeta remain out. Bielsa's expected XI: Muslera; Varela, Giménez, Cáceres, Olivera; Bentancur, Ugarte, Valverde; Canobbio, Núñez, M. Araújo.

Olivera and Bentancur on yellow-card suspension warning ahead of Spain match

· squad

Mathías Olivera and Rodrigo Bentancur each picked up a yellow card during Uruguay's 2-2 draw with Cape Verde (June 21) and now carry one booking apiece. Another caution against Spain would mean automatic suspension for the Round of 32 knockout match.

Bielsa rules out Araújo and De Arrascaeta for Spain clash

· injuries

Bielsa confirmed on 22 June that both Ronald Araújo and De Arrascaeta will miss Spain (26 June): 'They have no chance of playing against Spain.' He also stated: 'I am responsible that Uruguay has not achieved more than 2 points out of 6 possible.' Both will be assessed for knockout-stage availability.

Uruguay 2-2 Cape Verde: second consecutive draw leaves group stage wide open

· matches

Uruguay drew 2-2 with Cape Verde (Hard Rock Stadium, Miami). Scorers: K. Pina 21' (free kick), M. Araújo 44', Canobbio 45+6'; H. Varela 61'. Back three: Cáceres, Olivera, Sanabria; Núñez and De la Cruz on at 70'. Giménez again benched. Araújo and De Arrascaeta absent. Uruguay 2pts, second in Group H.

Araújo and De Arrascaeta still out for Cape Verde; Bielsa to make at least two changes

· injuries

Ahead of Group H match vs Cape Verde (June 21, Miami), Ronald Araújo (calf) and De Arrascaeta (calf) remain out. Cáceres partners Olivera in central defence. Giménez returned to training with the substitutes. Bielsa will make at least two changes from the Saudi Arabia lineup, with a midfield doubt between Ugarte and De la Cruz.

Araújo and De Arrascaeta still out for Cape Verde; Giménez expected to feature

· injuries

Ahead of Uruguay's June 21 match vs Cape Verde in Miami, Ronald Araújo (muscle tear) and de Arrascaeta (calf) remain unavailable. Araújo is targeting the Spain match (June 26); de Arrascaeta is not expected until the knockout stage. Bielsa is unlikely to change the starting XI from Saudi Arabia; Giménez is fit and may be introduced.

Uruguay draw 1-1 with Saudi Arabia in World Cup opener

· matches

Uruguay drew 1-1 with Saudi Arabia in Group H at Hard Rock Stadium, Miami. Al-Amri opened the scoring (41') from a rebound off Muslera; Maximiliano Araújo equalized (80') after Al-Owais parried a Viñas header into his path. Uruguay had 27 shots; Valverde was Man of the Match. Darwin Nunez was substituted at half-time. Giménez was on the bench; Ronald Araújo was omitted from the matchday squad.

Bielsa takes responsibility for Araújo training injury, says Giménez has healed

· injuries

Bielsa's June 15 press conference: Araújo arrived with a pre-existing muscle issue that became a tear in training. 'If the player gets injured in training, something is wrong. We feel responsible.' On Giménez: 'He has been with us for 15 days now and he has healed.' Araújo was omitted from the squad; Giménez was benched as precaution; de Arrascaeta remains out for the group stage.

Araújo, Giménez and De Arrascaeta all ruled out of opener against Saudi Arabia

· injuries

Uruguay will be without three key players for their June 15 Group H opener against Saudi Arabia in Miami. Ronald Araújo (calf strain) and Giménez (ankle sprain recovery) did not participate in field training at the Mexico base camp. De Arrascaeta also remains sidelined. Bielsa is expected to field Muslera; Varela, Cáceres, Bueno/Viña; Ugarte; Valverde, Bentancur, and Darwin Núñez.

Araújo, Giménez and De Arrascaeta miss Uruguay's first Mexico training session on pitch

· injuries

At Uruguay's first pitch session at Fairmont Mayakoba in Mexico, Ronald Araújo was absent, José María Giménez was limited to gym and bike work, and Giorgian de Arrascaeta did differentiated stationary-bike work with the Flamengo physiotherapist. Federico Valverde did regenerative bike work with no injury concern and is expected to start vs Saudi Arabia.

Uruguay arrive in Mexico, set up base camp in Playa del Carmen

· matches

Uruguay's squad flew out of Montevideo's Carrasco airport on a charter just after midnight on 9-10 June and landed in Cancún on the morning of 10 June, setting up their World Cup base camp at the Fairmont Mayakoba resort in Playa del Carmen, where they will be based for at least the group stage. La Celeste open Group H against Saudi Arabia on 15 June in Miami.

Ronald Araújo a doubt for the opener after calf injury, treated in Spain

· injuries

Defender Ronald Araújo developed a calf muscle problem at Uruguay's pre-tournament camp and travelled to Spain on 7-8 June for treatment, with the AUF's consent. The AUF said his World Cup participation is not at risk; he rejoined the squad to travel to Mexico on 9 June but is a doubt for the 15 June debut against Saudi Arabia, with a targeted return for the 21 June Cape Verde match.

Twelve youth players to travel with the senior squad to the World Cup

· squad

The AUF announced on 8 June 2026 that 12 youth players will travel with Marcelo Bielsa's 26-man senior squad to the 2026 World Cup, working alongside the selected players in training as part of the tournament planning. The AUF thanked the clubs for releasing the players.

AUF unveils new version of official World Cup song 'Cielo de un solo color'

· general

On 5 June 2026 the AUF presented a renewed version of No Te Va Gustar's 'Cielo de un solo color' as La Celeste's official song for the 2026 World Cup. The track was chosen by more than 70% of fans in an AUF consultation of a database of over 900,000 people, and the new version features guests Jorge Drexler, Hugo Fattoruso and Agarrate Catalina. It scored the video announcing Bielsa's 26-man squad.

AUF, government and FIFA hold formal World Cup send-off at Complejo Celeste

· general

On 4 June 2026 AUF authorities, President Yamandú Orsi's government and FIFA officials held a formal farewell ceremony for Uruguay's 26-man squad at the Complejo Celeste training base before the team's departure for the 2026 World Cup. Bielsa's players were already training together at the complex.

AUF confirms de Arrascaeta calf injury but keeps him in the squad

· injuries

On 3 June 2026 the AUF's official statement confirmed Giorgian de Arrascaeta suffered a calf (gemelo) muscle injury in training on 2 June, but that it does not prevent his World Cup participation and his call-up remains unchanged. He is expected to train fully from 12 June and will likely miss all three group-stage matches, with a possible knockout-stage return. No replacement was called up.

Bielsa names final 26; Suárez and Nández left out, Muslera recalled

· squad

Marcelo Bielsa named Uruguay's final 26-man World Cup squad on 31 May 2026. Record scorer Luis Suárez was omitted, missing a World Cup for the first time since 2010, as was qualifying regular Nahitan Nández. Goalkeeper Fernando Muslera was recalled from a 2024 retirement and is set to become the Uruguayan with the most World Cup appearances at his fifth tournament.

Five changes from the provisional list in Uruguay's final 26

· squad

Versus the provisional list, the final squad added Joaquín Piquerez, Emiliano Martínez, Rodrigo Zalazar, Rodrigo Aguirre and Federico Viñas, while José Luis Rodríguez, Benjamín García, Nicolás Fonseca, Facundo Torres and Agustín Álvarez Martínez dropped out. Rodrigo Bentancur, sidelined by a hamstring injury earlier in 2026, recovered to make the squad with no fitness concerns reported.

Squad

PlayerPositionClub
Fernando MusleraGKEstudiantes
Sergio RochetGKInternacional
Santiago MeleGKMonterrey
José María GiménezDFAtlético Madrid
Ronald AraújoDFBarcelona
Mathías OliveraDFNapoli
Guillermo VarelaDFFlamengo
Santiago BuenoDFWolverhampton
Matías ViñaDFRiver Plate
Sebastián CáceresDFAmérica
Joaquín PiquerezDFPalmeiras
Federico ValverdeMFReal Madrid
Manuel UgarteMFManchester United
Giorgian de ArrascaetaMFFlamengo
Nicolás de la CruzMFFlamengo
Rodrigo BentancurMFTottenham Hotspur
Maximilian AraújoMFSporting CP
Rodrigo ZalazarMFBraga
Emiliano MartínezMFPalmeiras
Juan Manuel SanabriaMFReal Salt Lake
Facundo PellistriFWPanathinaikos
Darwin NúñezFWAl-Hilal
Brian RodríguezFWAmérica
Agustín CanobbioFWFluminense
Rodrigo AguirreFWTigres
Federico ViñasFWReal Oviedo

Recent results

  • 2023-09-08 — URU 3-1 CHI (qualification)
  • 2023-09-12 — ECU 2-1 URU (qualification)
  • 2023-10-12 — COL 2-2 URU (qualification)
  • 2023-10-17 — URU 2-0 BRA (qualification)
  • 2023-11-16 — ARG 0-2 URU (qualification)
  • 2023-11-21 — URU 3-0 BOL (qualification)
  • 2024-03-26 — CIV 2-1 URU (friendly)
  • 2024-05-31 — CRC 0-0 URU (friendly)
  • 2024-06-05 — MEX 0-4 URU (friendly)
  • 2024-09-01 — GUA 1-1 URU (friendly)
  • 2024-09-06 — URU 0-0 PAR (qualification)
  • 2024-09-10 — VEN 0-0 URU (qualification)
  • 2024-10-11 — PER 1-0 URU (qualification)
  • 2024-10-15 — URU 0-0 ECU (qualification)
  • 2024-11-15 — URU 3-2 COL (qualification)
  • 2024-11-19 — BRA 1-1 URU (qualification)
  • 2025-03-21 — URU 0-1 ARG (qualification)
  • 2025-03-25 — BOL 0-0 URU (qualification)
  • 2025-06-05 — PAR 2-0 URU (qualification)
  • 2025-06-10 — URU 2-0 VEN (qualification)
  • 2025-09-04 — URU 3-0 PER (qualification)
  • 2025-09-09 — CHI 0-0 URU (qualification)
  • 2025-10-10 — URU 1-0 DOM (friendly)
  • 2025-10-13 — UZB 1-2 URU (friendly)
  • 2025-11-15 — MEX 0-0 URU (friendly)
  • 2025-11-18 — USA 5-1 URU (friendly)
  • 2026-03-27 — ENG 1-1 URU (friendly)
  • 2026-03-31 — ALG 0-0 URU (friendly)
  • 2026-06-15 — KSA 1-1 URU (group)
  • 2026-06-21 — URU 2-2 CPV (group)
  • 2026-06-26 — URU 0-1 ESP (group)

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