Who is injured for the World Cup final?

The 2026 World Cup is hurtling towards a blockbuster final between Argentina and Spain, who will be praying not to suffer any untimely injury setbacks in their quest for global glory.

Some of the big injury sagas heading into the tournament have come to happy endings, with Lamine Yamal now a regular fixture for Spain after returning to full fitness, while injury-ridden Neymar was able to get some minutes in what will be his final World Cup, before Brazil’s elimination at the hands of Norway.

However, there are still some notable worries heading into the World Cup final, while France and England will also be sweating some issues ahead of the third-place play-off.

See below for a full list of key injuries at this year’s World Cup.

Who is injured for the World Cup final?

Yeremy Pino (Spain)

The Crystal Palace winger suffered a collarbone injury against Uruguay and there were fears he could miss the rest of the tournament.

Those were allayed when Spain said X-rays showed Pino had not sustained a fractured collar bone but an acromioclavicular sprain.

However, he is yet to play any minutes for Spain since the group-stage injury. It is unlikely he will return for the final.

Victor Munoz (Spain)

New Liverpool signing Munoz has been absent for the entirety of the World Cup so far after sustaining a calf injury in the build-up to the tournament. He then suffered a further setback when he was diagnosed with another muscular injury. He will be absent for the final.

New Liverpool signing Victor Munoz has not featured for Spain so far this World Cup (Getty)

Facundo Medina (Argentina)

Argentina have been dealing with a significant defensive injury absence after Medina hobbled off with a calf problem in their last-32 clash win over Cape Verde.

Medina, who started three of Argentina’s first four World Cup outings, has not featured since that extra-time win and faces a race against time to be fit for the final.

Nicolas Tagliafico will hope to keep his place at left-back after helping Argentina navigate their way through the knockouts.

Who is injured for the World Cup third-place play-off?

Reece James (England)

England will be left to sweat over potentially another injury setback for Reece James after the defender was brought off against Argentina in their World Cup semi-final.

James, who has missed much of the tournament with a hamstring problem, went down in the 80th minute and required treatment from the England team doctor.

It was not clear whether he was cramping up or had sustained a fresh setback, but as he made his way towards the byline to receive treatment, Thomas Tuchel was quick to make sure no risks were taken.

James may now be a doubt to face France on Saturday.

Reece James came off against Argentina after receiving treatment (Reuters)

Declan Rice (England)

Rice’s tournament has been hampered by injuries with neural back pain forcing England to manage his workload. This saw him miss England’s group-stage finale against Panama, but he has started both knockout games since.

He was then struck down by illness ahead of the quarter-final with Norway, and despite recovering enough to make the starting line-up after missing two days of training, he looked out of sorts and was replaced at half-time.

But in a huge boost for England going into their semi-final with Argentina, Rice was declared fit to start and has confirmed he is “back to normal” and “100 percent now”. He should be fit to face France in the third-place play-off.

Declan Rice missed training due before the Norway clash due to a sickness bug (Getty)

William Saliba (France)

Everything went wrong for France in their semi-final defeat to Spain, not least the loss of influential defender William Saliba to injury.

Saliba went down untouched on the ball and immediately looked dejected, with it quickly becoming apparent the Arsenal man would not be able to continue.

He faces a race against time to be fit for France’s third-place play-off on Saturday but Arsenal will fear their star centre-back has suffered a longer-term injury, whose 2025/26 season was maligned by numerous fitness setbacks which saw him miss a combined 12 matches for club and country.

William Saliba suffered a setback against Spain (Reuters)

Jordan Henderson (England)

Brentford midfielder Henderson was thought to be ruled out for the World Cup after sustaining a freak injury in the aftermath of England’s win over Mexico - but that may not be the case.

Henderson leaped over the advertising hoarding but fell awkwardly and snapped his arm. He underwent surgery before returning to England’s Kansas City base, opting to remain with the squad until the end of the campaign rather than go home.

However, in a stunning development, Henderson was included among the substitutes to face Norway in the last-eight and says he will “cross the bridge” of potentially featuring in the semi-finals “when we come to it”.