South American 2026 World Cup Qualifying: Everything You Need To Know As We Reach The Sprint Finish

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·3 June 2025

South American 2026 World Cup Qualifying: Everything You Need To Know As We Reach The Sprint Finish

With so much club football being played over the last few months, it feels like an age since we last saw any international action — and if you follow a CONMEBOL national team, that wait has felt twice as long.

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Now, with just four matchdays left, countries will be looking to finish the job and book their place at next summer’s 2026 World Cup.

World champions Argentina have already secured their place, and the remaining nine teams will be hoping to join them. All still have a chance of qualification, but only six can do so automatically.

Argentina

Argentina can afford to experiment in the upcoming two windows of International fixtures, having already secured their spot at the World Cup.

Kevin Lomónaco, Mariano Troilo, Enzo Barrenechea, and Franco Mastantuono will be hoping to benefit from that, all four players could make their debuts here.

Lomónaco, Troilo, and Mastantuono are the only domestic-based players called up.

Mastantuono, aged just 17, is enjoying a wonderful campaign with River Plate and is one to keep a close eye on should he feature.

Premier League winner, Alexis Mac Allister, misses out due to an injury issue, which saw him miss Liverpool’s final two matches of the season.

Last time out, they had a terrific window with a 1-0 away win over Uruguay, before a 4-1 thumping of their bitter rivals Brazil.

Argentina Squad

Goalkeepers:Walter Benítez, Gerónimo Rulli, Emiliano Martínez

Midfielders:Enzo Barrenechea, Franco Mastantuono, Nico Paz, Thiago Almada, Exequiel Palacios

Forwards:Giuliano Simeone, Ángel Correa, Nicolás González, Julián Álvarez, Lautaro Martínez, Lionel Messi

Bolivia

Bolivia are winless in their last five matches, with three defeats and a draw; they desperately need to improve here if they want to secure a place at the World Cup.

They currently trail Venezuela by one point, who sit in seventh place, which would secure an Intercontinental play-off match.

In March, they suffered a 3-1 loss to Peru and held Uruguay to a goalless draw in El Alto. Bolivia dominated the proceedings, but couldn’t find a breakthrough, a result which could come back to haunt them.

Their squad features five potential debutants: Rodrigo Banegas, Diego Arroyo, Lucas Macazaga, Gary Rea, and Jhon Velásquez, as well as eleven players who ply their trade in the Bolivian Primera División.

Bolivia Squad

Goalkeepers:Rodrigo Banegas, Guillermo Viscarra, Carlos Lampe

Defenders:Diego Arroyo, Lucas Macazaga, Leonardo Zabala, Ervin Vaca, Efrain Morales, Yomar Rocha, Diego Medina, Roberto Fernández, Luis Haquín

Midfielders:Óscar López, Robson Tomé, Héctor Cuéllar, Miguel Terceros, Gabriel Villamil

Forwards:Gary Rea, Jhon Velásquez, Gabriel Sotomayor, Moisés Paniagua, Enzo Monteiro, Lucas Chávez, Carmelo Algarañaz

Brazil

Brazil begin a new era as legendary coach Carlo Ancelotti takes over at the helm, replacing Dorival Junior, who was sacked following Brazil’s 4-1 battering by Argentina back in March.

The loss to Argentina was their first in five matches, but performances under Dorival Junior had become unpredictable and far from the ‘Jogo Bonito’ Brazil was once known for.

They currently sit fourth in the qualification places.

His first squad sees two potential debutants in Hugo Souza and Alexsandro.

Flamengo have been flying in the Brasileirão, and Filipe Luís has got his boys playing some great football, so much so that Léo Ortiz, Wesley, Gerson, Alex Sandro, and Danilo have all earned call-ups to the squad. They make up five of the six domestically based players included.

Ancelotti has called up Vinícius Júnior, who is the only Real Madrid player to feature.

Brazil Squad

Midfielders:Gerson, Andrey Santos, Andreas Pereira, Casemiro, Bruno Guimarães, Éderson

Chile

La Roja have had a terrible Qualifying campaign as they sit rock bottom on ten points from their 14 matches. Despite this, they sit five points behind the Intercontinental playoffs, but it would take a miracle for them to be at the 2026 World Cup.

In March, Chile suffered a 1-0 loss to Paraguay in Asuncion before drawing 0-0 at home with Ecuador.

Gabriel Castellón, Lawrence Vigouroux, Esteban Matus, Matías Sepúlveda, and Rodrigo Ureña are all in line for a first cap.

Swansea City’s Vigouroux has had a solid season between the sticks. He had a tough task of replacing last year’s fan favourite Carl Rushworth, but managed to do so by picking up the club’s Best Newcomer of the Season award. He will be hoping he has done enough to impress Ricardo Gareca.

The squad features 14 domestic based players.

Chile Squad

Goalkeepers:Gabriel Castellón, Lawrence Vigouroux, Brayan Cortés

Defenders:Esteban Matus, Fabián Hormazábal, Nicolás Fernández, Benjamín Kuscevic, Felipe Loyola, Igor Lichnovsky, Francisco Sierralta, Gabriel Suazo, Guillermo Maripán

Midfielders:Matías Sepúlveda, Rodrigo Ureña, Javier Altamirano, Lucas Assadi, Vicente Pizarro, Darío Osorio, Esteban Pavez, Rodrigo Echeverría, Marcelino Núñez, Charles Aránguiz, Arturo Vidal

Forwards:Maximiliano Guerrero, Lucas Cepeda, Alexander Aravena, Víctor Dávila, Alexis Sánchez

Colombia

After making a flying start to their campaign, it has not been very reassuring for Colombia in recent matches, as they are winless in their last four matches and sit in sixth place. Despite this, they have a five-point lead over seventh-place Venezuela and will be confident of securing a place in the top six.

Back in March, Colombia suffered a 2-1 loss to Brazil away from home and drew 2-2 with Paraguay at home.

There are three debutants in the squad: Kevin Mier, Gustavo Puerta, and Marino Hinestroza.

Los Cafeteros have called up four domestic-based players.

Colombia Squad

Goalkeepers:David Ospina, Camilo Vargas, Kevin Mier

Defenders:Willer Ditta, Jhon Lucumí, Andrés Román, Yerry Mina, Cristian Borja, Daniel Muñoz, Davinson Sánchez, Deiver Machado

Midfielders:Kevin Castaño, Richard Ríos, James Rodríguez, Jhon Arias, Jefferson Lerma, Juan Fernando Quintero, Jaminton Campaz, Jorge Carrascal, Gustavo Puerta, Yáser Asprilla

Forwards:Luis Díaz, Jhon Córdoba, Jhon Durán, Juan Camilo Hernández, Marino Hinestroza

Ecuador

Despite a three-point deduction from the previous qualification cycle due to the Byron Castillo false birth document controversy, they currently sit second and are unbeaten in their last seven matches.

In March, they enjoyed a 2-1 victory over Venezuela and drew 0-0 on the road against Chile.

Ecuador will be hoping that they can complete the job in this window of fixtures and book their spot in the World Cup.

David Cabezas, Gonzalo Valle, and Bryan Ramírez are in line for a potential first cap.

The squad includes six domestic-based players.

Ecuador Squad

Goalkeepers:Hernán Galíndez, Moisés Ramírez, David Cabezas, Gonzalo Valle

Defenders:Pervis Estupiñán, Ángelo Preciado, Félix Torres, Piero Hincapié, Willian Pacho, Cristian Ramírez, Xavier Arreaga, Joel Ordóñez

Midfielders:Moisés Caicedo, Alan Franco, Gonzalo Plata, Jhegson Méndez, Kendry Páez, Alan Minda, John Yeboah, Pedro Vite, Denil Castillo, Yaimar Medina, Bryan Ramírez

Forwards:Enner Valencia, Kevin Rodríguez, Leonardo Campana, Nilson Angulo, John Mercado

Paraguay

The nation of Paraguay is buzzing at the thought of reaching their first World Cup in 16 years. They currently sit in fifth place and have a healthy six-point lead over Venezuela, who sit in seventh place.

They come into this battle unbeaten in their last eight matches and are on the brink of qualification.

Orlando Gill, Ronaldo de Jesús, Rubén Lezcano, and Rodney Redes are in line for a first cap.

Their squad features three domestic-based players, two from Cerro Porteño and one from Olimpia.

In March, they saw off Chile in a 1-o victory before earning a hard-fought point in Colombia.

Paraguay Squad

Goalkeepers:Roberto Fernández, Carlos Coronel, Juan Espínola, Orlando Gill

Defenders:Gustavo Gómez, Júnior Alonso, Fabián Balbuena, Omar Alderete, Gustavo Velázquez, Juan Cáceres, Agustín Sández, Ronaldo de Jesús

Midfielders:Miguel Almirón, Mathías Villasanti, Andrés Cubas, Alejandro Romero Gamarra, Ramón Sosa, Diego Gómez, Damián Bobadilla, Matías Galarza, Rubén Lezcano

Forwards:Ángel Romero, Antonio Sanabria, Julio Enciso, Gabriel Ávalos, Isidro Pitta, Rodney Redes

Peru

Peru sit ninth with ten points, and they trail Venezuela by five points. In March, they picked up only their second win of the campaign with a 3-1 victory over Bolivia at home. In a crucial match against Venezuela, they suffered a 1-0 loss on the road.

Their squad includes 12 domestic-based players, one less than in March and four potential debutants in: Kenji Cabrera, Diego Enríquez, César Inga, and Matías Lazo.

Veteran forward Paolo Guerrero will captain La Bicolor once again..

Peru Squad

Goalkeepers:Pedro Gallese, Diego Enríquez, Carlos Cáceda

Defenders:Luis Abram, César Inga, Matías Lazo, Renzo Garcés, Carlos Zambrano, Oliver Sonne, Marcos López, Luis Advíncula

Midfielders:Renato Tapia, Edison Flores, Erick Noriega, Piero Quispe, Pedro Aquino, Sergio Peña, André Carrillo

Forwards:Andy Polo, Kenji Cabrera, Kevin Quevedo, Paolo Guerrero, Gianluca Lapadula, Luis Ramos, Bryan Reyna

Uruguay

Despite only one win in their last eight qualifying matches, Uruguay remain in a healthy position to qualify for the World Cup, They are one of three teams sitting on 21 points, six clear of Venezuela.

In March, Uruguay suffered a 1-0 home loss to Argentina, before earning a point against Bolivia, despite being second best in the match. They will be desperate to start winning again, having not done so in three matches.

Marcelo Bielsa has been keeping an eye on the domestic leagues in Uruguay, having called up seven uncapped domestic-based players: Kevin Martínez, Paolo Calione, Lucas Agazzi, Patricio Pacífico, Germán Barbas, Erico Cuello, and Pablo Suárez.

In March, Bielsa called up just one player from the Uruguayan Primera División.

Uruguay Squad

Goalkeepers:Kevin Martínez, Franco Israel, Santiago Mele, Sergio Rochet

Defenders:Paolo Calione, Lucas Agazzi, Patricio Pacífico, Ronald Araújo, José María Giménez, Sebastián Cáceres, Mathías Olivera, Santiago Bueno, José Luis Rodríguez, Joaquín Piquerez, Guillermo Varela, Marcelo Saracchi

Midfielders:Germán Barbas, Erico Cuello, Federico Valverde, Nahitan Nández, Maximiliano Araújo, Nicolás Fonseca, Rodrigo Bentancur, Manuel Ugarte, Emiliano Martínez, Giorgian de Arrascaeta, Nicolás de la Cruz

Venezuela

March was an important month for Venezuela, which, after going winless in nine qualifying matches, ran out 1-0 winners over Peru in Maturín in what was a huge game.

La Vinatinto currently occupies seventh place – the final spot, which would secure a playoff place. Their other match last time around saw them lose 2-1 to Ecuador.

They will be hoping to pick up from where they left off in Maturín in what promises to be another crucial window in Venezuela’s quest to qualify for their first ever World Cup.

Their squad features no domestic-based players, the only CONMEBOL nation to do so.

Leonardo Flores and Alessandro Milani are two potential debutants.