Austria midfielder Christoph Baumgartner will miss the World Cup due to a right thigh muscle injury, the country's governing body ÖFB said on Tuesday.
Baumgartner, 26, sustained the injury in the warm-up for Monday's tune-up match against Tunisia in Vienna which Austria won 1-0. The final diagnosis came via an MRI scan on Tuesday.
"This is very bitter news for Christoph and for us as a team. He is an important player and a key personality within the team," coach Ralf Rangnick said in an ÖFB statement.
Rangnick and the ÖFB are yet to say who will take Baumgartner's place in the squad.
Baumgartner played a strong club season for Germany's RB Leipzig with 13 Bundesliga goals and nine assists.
He has won 58 Austria caps and has scored the quickest ever goal in a men's international, in March 2024 against Slovakia after 6.3 seconds.
Austria leave for the World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada on Thursday. They start on June 16 against Jordan, with title holders Argentina and Algeria the other group stage opponents.
