The 26-man Colombia squad for the 2026 World Cup has been announced, as the South American nation prepares to return to the global stage.
Nestor Lorenzo announced his squad a press conference on Monday. Colombia’s last appearance at the World Cup was in 2018, where they reached the last 16. They subsequently failed to qualify for the 2022 tournament in Qatar.
Leading the team is captain James Rodriguez, who is set to appear at his third World Cup, 12 years on from lighting up the competition in Brazil. He won the golden boot in 2014, despite Colombia exiting in the quarter-finals, the furthest the nation has ever made it into the competition. James departed MLS team Minnesota United in May after playing only four games for the club.
Luis Diaz has also been named in the squad after a stellar first season with Bayern Munich following his summer move from Liverpool. The winger scored 26 goals and recorded 23 assists in all competitions as Bayern won the Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal.
📋 ¡𝗟𝗼𝘀 𝟮𝟲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗼𝗰𝗮𝗱𝗼𝘀 𝗖𝗢𝗡 𝗢𝗥𝗚𝗨𝗟𝗟𝗢 𝗖𝗢𝗟𝗢𝗠𝗕𝗜𝗔𝗡𝗢!
𝗘𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘀 𝗹𝗼𝘀 𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗱𝗼𝘀 𝗽𝗼𝗿 𝗡𝗲́𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝗟𝗼𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘇𝗼, 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗮 𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗼𝘀 𝗲𝗻 𝗹𝗮 𝗖𝗼𝗽𝗮 𝗠𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗱𝗲 𝗹𝗮 𝗙𝗜𝗙𝗔 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲 🇺🇸🇲🇽🇨🇦… pic.twitter.com/nUfoteMbyS
— Selección Colombia (@FCFSeleccionCol) May 25, 2026
Goalkeeper David Ospina will be looking to add to his record 130 caps for his country. The 37-year-old made his senior international debut in a friendly against Uruguay in 2007.
Half of Lorenzo’s squad play their club football in Europe, with the Crystal Palace duo of Jefferson Lerma and Daniel Munoz representing the Premier League.
Colombia will be based in Guadalajara, Mexico during the tournament and will face Costa Rica and the United States in warm-up friendly matches on June 1 and June 4. They get their World Cup campaign underway against tournament debutants Uzbekistan on June 17 in Mexico City, before taking on DR Congo in Guadalajara on June 23 and Portugal in Miami four days later.
Colombia’s 26-man World Cup squad in full
Goalkeepers: Camilo Vargas (Atlas), David Ospina (Atletico Nacional), Alvaro Montero (Velez Sarsfield)
Defenders: Daniel Munoz (Crystal Palace), Santiago Arias (Independiente), Yerry Mina (Cagliari), Davinson Sanchez (Galatasaray), Jhon Lucumi (Bologna), Willer Ditta (Cruz Azul), Yohan Mojica (Mallorca), Deiver Machado (Nantes)
Midfielders: Richard Rios (Benfica), Jefferson Lerma (Crystal Palace), Gustavo Puerta (Racing de Santander), Kevin Castano (River Plate), Jhon Arias (Palmeiras), James Rodriguez, Juan Fernando Quintero (River Plate), Jorge Carrascal (Flamengo), Juan Camilo Portilla (Athletico Paranaense)
Forwards: Luis Diaz (Bayern Munich), Luis Suarez (Sporting CP), Carlos Gomez (Vasco da Gama), Jaminton Campaz (Rosario Central), Jhon Cordoba (Krasnodar), Juan Camilo Hernandez (Real Betis)
