By Mohamed Ali -
June 15, 2026 - Somalia has never qualified for a World Cup. Not once in the tournament's nearly 100-year history. But at the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America, four players with Somali heritage are taking the field , wearing the jerseys of Qatar, Tunisia, and Sweden.
Their stories span three continents. They were born in Mogadishu, raised in Stockholm, grew up in Copenhagen, and made it through youth academies in Doha. They are the sons and daughters of a Somali diaspora that left home, and built something extraordinary from wherever they landed.
This is their story.
PLAYER 1 OF 4 · QATAR#
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Akram Afif — The Captain With Somali Roots
Akram Afif is Qatar's captain. He is one of the best players in Asian football and the face of Qatar's 2026 World Cup campaign.
His father, Hassan Afif, played professional football for Horseed FC in Mogadishu and represented the Somalia national team in the 1970s. When the civil war came, the family moved to Qatar. Akram was born there in 1996.
He has 127 caps and 40 goals for Qatar. He won the Asian Cup Golden Boot and MVP award in 2023 and has been named Asian Footballer of the Year twice — in 2019 and 2023. On the field, he is fast, creative, and difficult to stop.
The Somali connection is one generation back. But it is real. And it matters to the community that watches him play.
PLAYER 2 OF 4 · QATAR — HISTORY MAKER#
Yusuf Abdurisag — Born in Mogadishu. Played at the World Cup.
This is the story that stopped the Somali diaspora in their tracks.
Yusuf Abdurisag was born on August 6, 1999, in Mogadishu, Somalia. His family moved to Qatar when he was young. He came through the Al-Sadd youth academy and built his career in the Qatar Stars League, most recently on loan at Al-Wakrah.
When he took the field for Qatar against Switzerland at the 2026 World Cup, he became the first person born on Somali soil to ever start a FIFA World Cup match. In the tournament's nearly 100-year history, that had never happened before.
Somalia's national team has a FIFA ranking around 198. They have never been close to qualifying for a World Cup. Abdurisag is, quite simply, the nearest any Somali-born player has ever come to the biggest stage in football.
He has 36 caps and 3 goals for Qatar. He wears #13.
His journey, from Mogadishu to the World Cup, is one of the most remarkable diaspora stories in global sport.
PLAYER 3 OF 4 · TUNISIA#
Anis Ben Slimane — European-Trained, Diaspora Roots
Anis Ben Slimane was born in Copenhagen, Denmark on March 16, 2001. His parents have Tunisian-Somali roots. He grew up in Scandinavia and built his football career in the Danish Superliga before moving to England.
He now plays for Norwich City in the Championship. In the 2025-26 season, he had 11 goal contributions in 26 appearances , a strong enough run of form to earn a recall to Tunisia's national team after months on the sidelines.
This is his second World Cup. At Qatar 2022, he played 83 minutes in Tunisia's 1-0 win over France , one of the tournament's biggest upsets. He was one of the few Tunisian players to come out of that game with his reputation enhanced.
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Tunisia are in Group F at the 2026 World Cup alongside Sweden, Japan, and the Netherlands. They had the cleanest qualifying campaign in World Cup history , nine wins, one draw, zero losses, and zero goals conceded across 10 matches.
PLAYER 4 OF 4 · SWEDEN
Taha Ali — Born in Stockholm, Raised by Somali Refugees
Taha Ali was born on July 1, 1998, in the Spånga-Tensta district of Stockholm. Both of his parents fled Somalia's civil war in the 1990s. He is a second-generation Somali-Swedish footballer who has built his career entirely in Scandinavia.
He plays as a winger for Malmö FF and wears #22 for the Sweden national team. Fast and direct, he has been compared to Riyad Mahrez for his style of play, tight control, sharp turns, and the ability to create danger from wide positions.
When Taha runs onto the field for Sweden, Somali communities in Stockholm, Gothenburg, and across the world watch with pride. He is their son, playing at the highest level.
HONOURABLE MENTION · SAUDI ARABIA#
Mukhtar Ali — The One Who Narrowly Missed Out
Mukhtar Ali was born in Somalia. He was raised in England and came through Chelsea's youth academy. He relocated to Saudi Arabia and plays for Al-Ettifaq. He speaks Somali. His story stretches across three continents and two hemispheres.
He did not make Saudi Arabia's final 26-man squad for the 2026 World Cup. Saudi coach Georgios Donis chose a group built on Saudi Pro League experience and players who had been through the qualifying campaign together. Mukhtar Ali was not among the final selection.
His story is not over. He is young. The next cycle begins in 2030.
THE BIGGER PICTURE#
What This Means for the Global Somali Diaspora
Somalia's national football team has a FIFA ranking around 198. More than half their squad is foreign-born diaspora, players who left Somalia and grew up elsewhere. Yet none of them represent Somalia at the biggest tournaments. The federation lacks resources. The infrastructure is not there yet.
So when Somali communities watch the World Cup in 2026, they watch through borrowed jerseys. They cheer for Qatar. They cheer for Tunisia. They cheer for Sweden. And they feel something real.
These players are proof that when you give a Somali child stability, safety, and a football , they will compete at the highest level on earth.
There is also a painful contrast. Omar Abdulkadir Artan , a Somali referee and CAF's best official in Africa in 2025, was selected to work at the 2026 World Cup. He was denied entry to the United States under travel restrictions and will miss the tournament entirely. He did everything right. He earned his place. And the door was shut.
The players got in. The referee did not. That is the diaspora experience in full.
What does this moment mean to you?
These four players carry Somali heritage to the world's biggest stage. They represent different nations, but they come from the same roots.