2026 World Cup: Three of the seven top scorers in Serie A absent

The 2026 World Cup is fast approaching and the lists of the 48 qualified teams are starting to take shape. The competition, which will take place for the first time with 48 nations, will begin in ten days at the Azteca Stadium in Mexico City, during the opening match between Mexico and South Africa. This World Cup introduces an additional round, with the creation of the round of 16.

For the third consecutive edition, Italy will not participate in the final phase, despite Serie A which remains one of the championships bringing the most players to the qualified selections, offensive players included.

Indeed, the top scorers in the latest Serie A ranking appear in the majority among those selected. Lautaro Martinez, author of 17 goals and top scorer in the 2025/26 championship, as well as Italian champion with Inter, is part of the Argentine selection. Coach Lionel Scaloni also retained Nico Paz, scorer of 12 goals with Como, a key player in his club's great season, which finished fourth.

The second top scorer is Donyell Malen (14 goals in the league), called up by Ronald Koeman in the Dutch selection. He is joined on the list by Marcus Thuram, who scored 13 goals for Juventus and is part of France, the real favorites to win the world title this year.

Image

However, some big names are missing. Tasos Douvikas, Greek top scorer in Serie A with his 14 goals, will not participate in the World Cup due to Greece's absence. Rasmus Hojlund, Danish striker, is also absent, Denmark having been eliminated in the play-offs.

Furthermore, Giovanni Simeone, former Naples player and Torino scorer with 11 goals, was not selected by Argentina, a purely technical exclusion.

Here is the ranking of the top seven scorers in Serie A 2025/26 and their presence at the World Cup:

1. Lautaro Martinez (17 goals) – Present
2. Donyell Malen (14 goals) – Present
3. Tasos Douvikas (14 goals) – Absent
4. Marcus Thuram (13 goals) – Present
5. Nico Paz (12 goals) – Present
6. Rasmus Hojlund (12 goals) – Absent
7. Giovanni Simeone (11 goals) – Absent

Thus, three of the seven top scorers in Serie A will not be traveling to the 2026 World Cup, but the majority of the most prolific players in the Italian championship will be present in North America.

Image