Getting to see them one more time feels like a gift
Once every four years, football offers the world a mirror — and in 2026, that mirror will reflect both the future and the fading present. Across stadiums in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, a generation of icons including Messi, Ronaldo, Modric, Neymar, and Salah will likely make their final appearances on the sport's grandest stage, each carrying the particular weight of unfinished stories or hard-won legacies. The expanded 48-team format, unprecedented in scale, becomes an unlikely vessel for something deeply human: the desire to be remembered well, to leave on one's own terms, or to finally achieve what has long remained just out of reach.
- Messi and Ronaldo stand on the threshold of a sixth World Cup appearance — a record no player has ever reached — yet their motivations could not be more different: one seeking to savour what he has already won, the other still chasing the one thing he has not.
- A record eight players aged 40 or older are expected to compete, including 43-year-old goalkeeper Craig Gordon, who could become the second-oldest World Cup player in history, turning the tournament into an unlikely stage for athletic longevity.
- Neymar's return from a serious ACL injury under coach Carlo Ancelotti has reopened a door many believed permanently closed, forcing a reckoning with whether his international legacy will ever match his undeniable individual brilliance.
- Salah, De Bruyne, Modric, and a constellation of other veterans enter 2026 carrying the specific ache of unfulfilled international promise — for them, this is less a competition than a final court of appeal.
- The tournament is landing not merely as a sporting event but as a generational farewell, one that will simultaneously crown new stars and quietly close the chapter on the most decorated era of modern football.
The 2026 FIFA World Cup, spread across the United States, Canada, and Mexico in an expanded 48-team format, arrives carrying more than logistical ambition. It may be the last time the world watches football's most iconic generation compete on its biggest stage.
Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are both expected to make history with sixth World Cup appearances. Messi, 38, arrives as a champion — Argentina's 2022 triumph in Qatar completed a career arc that once seemed impossible — yet questions about his physical durability in a longer tournament remain. Ronaldo, 41, arrives still hungry. Central to Portugal's plans under Roberto Martinez, he has won almost everything except the trophy that defines his ambitions most deeply.
They will share the stage with an unprecedented cohort of veterans. Scotland's Craig Gordon, 43, could become the second-oldest World Cup player ever. Mexico's Guillermo Ochoa may join Messi and Ronaldo in a sixth appearance. Manuel Neuer, Fernando Muslera, and others push the record for over-40 competitors to eight — more than all previous World Cups combined.
Luka Modric, who guided Croatia to a final in 2018 and third place in 2022, faces what is almost certainly his last opportunity to add to that legacy. Neymar's path is more turbulent: a serious ACL injury in 2023 had effectively ended his international story in many observers' minds, but a recall under Carlo Ancelotti has given Brazil's all-time leading scorer one final chance to silence those who say his international record never matched his talent.
Mohamed Salah and Kevin De Bruyne carry their own unresolved narratives. Salah, Africa's most celebrated player of his era, has never had a defining World Cup moment. De Bruyne, when fit, remains world-class — but Belgium's golden generation is aging, and 2026 may be their last realistic window. Son Heung-min, Sadio Mane, Virgil van Dijk, and others find themselves in the same position: one final chance under the brightest lights the sport offers.
The tournament will introduce new stars and new nations. But it may ultimately be remembered as the moment football said a long, luminous goodbye to an extraordinary generation — one for whom the question is no longer simply about winning, but about how they will be remembered.
The 2026 FIFA World Cup will be held across the United States, Canada, and Mexico with 48 teams and 1,248 players competing in an expanded format that has never been attempted before. But beyond the logistical novelty, this tournament carries a different weight: it may be the last time the world sees some of football's most recognizable figures on its biggest stage.
Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are both expected to make their sixth World Cup appearances, a distinction no player has achieved before. Messi, now 38, arrives as a man who has already won the thing—Argentina's 2022 victory in Qatar completed a career arc that few thought possible. He plays for Inter Miami now, and while he continues to produce moments of genuine brilliance, the physical toll of an expanded tournament looms as a real question. Yet dismissing him has rarely worked out well for skeptics. Ronaldo, at 41, carries a different hunger. The Portuguese captain has won nearly everything except the one trophy that matters most to him: the World Cup. He remains central to Roberto Martinez's plans, and a title would provide the kind of ending that seems almost too perfect to be true.
They will not be alone in their farewell. Scotland's Craig Gordon, a goalkeeper, will be 43 during the tournament and could become the second-oldest player ever to appear in a World Cup match, behind Egypt's Essam El Hadary, who played at 45 in 2018. The expanded format is expected to feature a record eight players aged 40 or older—more than all previous World Cups combined. Mexico's Guillermo Ochoa could join Messi and Ronaldo in a sixth appearance. Germany's Manuel Neuer, Uruguay's Fernando Muslera, and Cape Verde's Vozinha are also expected to compete.
Luka Modric of Croatia has already led his country to a runners-up finish in 2018 and third place in 2022. The 2026 tournament likely represents his final chance to add to that legacy. Neymar's path to Qatar has been far more complicated. A serious ACL injury in 2023 and subsequent fitness struggles had many believing his international career was finished. But Brazil coach Carlo Ancelotti brought him back into the setup, and now Neymar faces what could be his last opportunity to answer critics who say his international achievements do not match his extraordinary talent, despite being Brazil's all-time leading scorer.
Mohamed Salah of Egypt carries similar unfinished business. Widely regarded as one of Africa's greatest players, he has never had a defining World Cup moment. Injuries hampered his only previous appearance in 2018, making 2026 potentially career-defining. Kevin De Bruyne of Belgium enters with his own weight of expectation. Injuries have increasingly interrupted his career, but when fit, he remains one of the world's most influential midfielders. Belgium's celebrated Golden Generation is aging, and 2026 may be their last realistic chance at a major trophy.
Others in similar positions include Son Heung-min, Sadio Mane, Riyad Mahrez, Virgil van Dijk, James Rodriguez, and Edin Dzeko—all expected to view the tournament as one final opportunity to shine. The 2026 World Cup will certainly introduce new stars and new nations to the global stage. But it may ultimately be remembered as the tournament where football said goodbye to an extraordinary generation. For these players, the focus has shifted. It is no longer solely about lifting the trophy. It is about legacy, about redemption, about one final moment under the brightest lights the sport can offer.
Notable Quotes
For Messi, Ronaldo, Neymar, Modric and many others, the focus is no longer solely on lifting the trophy. It is about legacy, redemption and one final moment under football's brightest lights.— Tournament analysis
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why does 2026 feel different from any other World Cup?
Because for the first time, we're watching a generation that has defined modern football reach the end of their road all at once. Messi and Ronaldo have been constants for nearly two decades. Their absence will be felt.
But Messi already won. He has nothing left to prove.
That's true. But there's a difference between having nothing to prove and having nothing left to chase. He can still play. The question is whether he wants to, and whether his body will let him.
What about Ronaldo? He's 41. How is he still competitive?
Sheer will, partly. But also because Portugal still needs him, and he still needs the World Cup. It's the one thing that has eluded him. That hunger doesn't fade.
Eight players over 40—isn't that unusual?
Unprecedented, actually. The expanded format allows it. But it also means we're seeing players stay longer because they can, because there's more room, because one more tournament feels possible when it might not have before.
What happens to these players after 2026?
Most will retire. Some will try to keep playing at club level. But their international careers will be over. That's the real weight of this tournament—it's a closing of an era.
Is there a sense of sadness about that?
Not sadness, exactly. More like witnessing something complete itself. These are players who have given us decades of extraordinary moments. Getting to see them one more time, together, feels like a gift.