The career of a footballer is not very long. With a lot of hard work, they get to play in a couple of World Cups, and some don’t even get to play in one. So having several participations in the most important national team tournament on the planet is a luxury.
Many in this edition are playing their last tournament because it is played every four years, and it is impossible for them to reach another edition due to their age. So you have to enjoy them.
In this World Cup, many of the players on our list want to win the trophy, and it would be a good idea to bet on them or your team using this betway voucher. In this link, you will find the best sites with the highest odds to place your bet.
These are the 5 players who will be playing in their last World Cup.
- Robert Lewandowski
The Polish striker is 33 years old, it is unlikely that he will be playing at the highest level in 4 years’ time. So it is very likely that this will be his last chance to do something important with his national team.
There is no doubt that he is still one of the best strikers on the planet, and that if he continues to take care of his physique as he has done all this time he could play at the best level for a couple of years, but the thing is that his national team is undergoing a generational change, and it will be difficult to qualify.
If Poland does not qualify for 2026, this could be their farewell to international tournaments.
- Karim Benzema
The man who could be the new Ballon d’Or is already 34 years old, and it seems difficult for him to play another World Cup at the age of 38. In his position, there are many young players who will be looking to go to the World Cup in 2026 and at 38. Unless he is at a spectacular level, it is difficult for him to attend.
Benzema will be looking for the French national team’s second championship in a row to say goodbye as one of the best in the history of his country, as he won it all with Madrid. This would be revenge after being away from the national team for so long.
In Qatar, he will be looking to maintain his level to establish himself as the best player on the planet at the moment.
- Manuel Neuer
The veteran Teutonic goalkeeper is 36 and by 2026 he would be 40, obviously, the goalkeeping position is much longer-lived than the others, but in Germany, they have goalkeepers to spare, and Ter Stegen deserves his chance and is likely to be the starter in a hypothetical World Cup in 4 years time.
Manuel Neuer is still at a high level, but he is no longer the same as he was in 2014 when he was a beast. Injuries have reduced his level, and it is possible that in a couple of years he will announce his retirement.
In recent years, there has been talks that it is possible that after the World Cup he will announce his departure from the national team to concentrate on Bayern Munich, where he will have a couple of years left before he retires for good.
- Cristiano Ronaldo
The Portuguese would be 41 years old by the 2026 World Cup in North America. His physical level is imposing, and he has said that he will play until he can no longer do so, and that is a long way off. To be honest, he almost doesn’t make the list because, for the way he is at the moment, we think he has about 5 more years of good football left in him.
But, even if he is at the best possible level, it is difficult for the Lusitanian to withstand such a demanding level, apart from the Portuguese national team itself has strikers for a generational change and remember that it is always difficult for them to qualify and like Lewandowski, if they do not qualify, this would be Ronaldo’s farewell.
Cristiano has said that he doesn’t see playing in the 2026 World Cup as out of the question. Will he make it?
- Lionel Messi
The seven-time Ballon d’Or winner and perhaps the best player in the world is 34 years old and has already said that this will probably be his last World Cup. He already managed to win one international title with Argentina, but he wants the cup that eluded him in 2014 and that would take him out of Diego Maradona’s shadow.
Messi knows that this is his last chance, as at 38 years of age it looks difficult for him to lead Argentina to another World Cup. He himself has made it known that his plans are to finish his contract with PSG and in two years’ time go to the MLS.
The American League does not have the level of competition that Europe has, so even if he is physically fit in four years, perhaps his level of football will drop a little.
The mission of “La Pulga” is to win the World Cup. He has been very focused on achieving it. If people do not consider him the best in history, it is because of this title that he is missing, he knows that for there to be no discussion, he has to do it in this, which is his last chance. Will he achieve it?