Deschamps announces the final France team for the World Cup

We already knew it even before the final squad announcement — France national football team are heading to the 2026 FIFA World Cup to be feared and to try to win it. Whether they will succeed, nobody knows, but one thing is certain: no national team on the planet currently possesses such a terrifying collection of attacking talent. Didier Deschamps announced his final squad for the upcoming World Cup, revealing the names of the 26 players who will travel to the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Among those left out were Eduardo Camavinga, Randal Kolo Muani, and Lucas Chevalier, the goalkeeper of Paris Saint-Germain.

When one door closes, another opens, and the surprise call-ups are now being celebrated by 21-year-old Robin Risser, goalkeeper of RC Lens, as well as Maxence Lacroix and his Crystal Palace F.C. teammate Jean-Philippe Mateta. How much Mateta will actually play remains questionable, but simply being part of this attacking group should flatter him. His colleagues will be Kylian Mbappe, Michael Olise, Ousmane Dembele, Desire Doue, Rayan Cherki, Marcus Thuram, Bradley Barcola — and there is also Maghnes Akliouche, the winger from AS Monaco FC, who debuted last September but delivered an outstanding friendly performance against Colombia national football team at the end of March, convincing Deschamps to include him in the squad.

These are 26 players whose combined market value, according to Transfermarkt, stands at an astonishing 1.47 billion euros. Only England national football team have a more valuable squad, worth over 1.6 billion. France also possess a stable and physically dominant midfield featuring Aurelien Tchouameni, Adrien Rabiot, N'Golo Kante, Manu Kone, and Warren Zaïre-Emery, which raises the question of where the weak point in Deschamps’ team even is, as he attempts to win his second World Cup before eventually handing the job over — most likely to Zinedine Zidane.

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Perhaps the vulnerability lies at left back, because Theo Hernandez is no longer at the peak of his powers, and even when he was, he sometimes treated defensive duties too casually. Also available are Lucas Digne and Theo’s brother Lucas Hernandez, who can operate both as a center-back and full-back. Mike Maignan has been the undisputed first-choice goalkeeper for years, while Brice Samba serves as the backup. Newcomer Robin Risser arrives in the national team after being named the best goalkeeper of the current Ligue 1 season.

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Finally, a few names not traveling to the World Cup further prove that France could probably field two separate teams capable of competing deep into the tournament: Leny Yoro, Wesley Fofana, Nordi Mukiele, Castello Lukeba, Camavinga, Corentin Tolisso, Mattéo Guendouzi, Youssouf Fofana, Moussa Diaby, Elye Wahi, and Mathys Tel.

"Eduardo Camavinga is coming off a difficult season, where he played less due to injuries. He's still young. I have choices to make, a squad structure to respect in terms of the distribution between defense, midfield, and attack. But I can imagine his disappointment tonight, and I understand it," revealed Deschamps after revealing the list.