The U.S. men’s national team announced its official 26-man roster for the 2026 FIFA World Cup on May 26, and there was one shock omission: Diego Luna.
The 22-year-old star midfielder of MLS’s Real Salt Lake was not only a USMNT fan favorite, but also one of the most important players under manager Mauricio Pochettino in 2025, with 16 caps and seven goal contributions alone that year across 945 minutes played. Luna was critically important in the U.S.’s run to the Concacaf Gold Cup final, scoring three total goals, including a brace in the 2–1 semifinal win over Guatemala. In his most recent outing with the U.S. back in November, he started the friendly against Uruguay and scored one goal, helping the squad to a dominant 5–1 win.
Luna was highly anticipated to feature on soccer’s grandest stage this summer, having already featured in several World Cup commercial campaigns, USMNT kit advertisements and as one of 20 players included in the tournament’s Panini Sticker Collection.
The young star suffered an early-season knee injury, which sidelined him for three MLS matches and caused him to miss the most recent March international window; however, he has since recovered and returned to full form, a key starter for Salt Lake with four goals and two assists in nine league games thus far. Nevertheless, Luna was excluded from Pochettino’s master plan.
“It’s an interesting decision for me,” RSL manager Pablo Mastroeni said about Luna’s World Cup exclusion. “In 2025, the national team really leaned on him, both as an attacking player and as a mentality piece. Pochettino referenced his ability to fight, and I just think that in a [World] Cup where you need a difference maker—some guy who’s gonna come into a game where the stage will never be too big—I just thought that [Luna made sense.].”
Luna is most likely destined to watch soccer’s grandest affair from his couch at home this summer; however, it is technically not impossible for him to receive a last minute call-up.
How Diego Luna Could Earn World Cup Call-Up
As of June 1, all nations’ rosters for the World Cup are finalized; however, teams are able to make emergency swaps, pulling from their preliminary 55-player squads, in the case of a player’s injury up until 24 hours prior to their first World Cup match. Although U.S. Soccer never officially published their preliminary list—-as FIFA did not require teams to publicize that information—it is highly likely that Luna was included on that list, making him eligible until 24 hours before the USMNT’s opening match against Paraguay on June 12 to be called up.
USMNT star center back Chris Richards is currently injured, diagnosed on May 21 with two torn ligaments in his ankle, which he suffered during a Premier League match for Crystal Palace. It is unknown yet if and when Richards will return to full health, having been sidelined for Palace’s Europa Conference League final win on May 27 as well as the USMNT’s friendly against Senegal on Sunday. He reportedly trained off to the side on Tuesday by himself, and his status is still unclear for the World Cup.
Should Richards be unable to compete at the tournament, Luna may be called upon to take his place, despite playing an entirely different position. Pochettino included five center backs in his final tournament roster and only four central midfielders, an imbalance that has caused some scrutiny. So, it is not unfathomable that Pochettino could decide to reinforce his midfield instead.
