From Grassroots to the World Cup: The Journeys Behind the Game’s Biggest Stage
As the 2026 FIFA World Cup dawns on us, we take a look at the stories of players who have grassroots foundations, revealing also how different continents develop players in different ways
The World Cup is steadily approaching us, and in the build-up to what proves to be another exciting and unpredictable competition, I'd like to explore the stories of international players from the 48 nations heading to this year’s tournament, particularly their roots in grassroots or non-league football.
Footballers often take the most interesting yet difficult paths to reach the top, and the World Cup is what almost every player dreams of playing in, as it culminates where each player desires to make their mark: on the world stage, showcasing their talent for the world to see for their national team. In terms of pride, feelings of success, not much can match representing your nation at a World Cup.
Goalkeepers
Both sit as the current No. 1 for their respective nations of England and the USA and have had interesting journeys to get to where they are. England will feature in Group L of the FIFA World Cup alongside Ghana, Panama, and Croatia, with their first game against Croatia on 17th June. USMNT will feature in Group D alongside Paraguay, Türkiye, and Australia, and their first game is against Paraguay on 13th June.
Defenders
We now have our backline, who all play across Europe’s top 5 leagues and have featured in the UEFA Champions League. Rudiger, Van Dijk, Spence have all won European, League titles, both or either or. However, all had humble beginnings, working their way up to the pinnacle of football.
Midfielders
The midfielders, the engines, connectors, and creative threads of a squad, who possess the brains to unlock defences, split lines, but also sure up and support their backline. We have the mighty Ngolo Kante, a 2018 World Cup winner, known for covering crazy amounts of ground, whose rise and story is one of the most remarkable. Considering the limitations placed on him and what he’s achieved, it’s simply incredible.
Amrabat is known for his excellent displays in the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar, guiding Morocco to the semi-finals, which was the first time an African nation has reached this stage.
Mainoo has had a rollercoaster of a season, which has ended with him being an important part of Manchester United’s resurgence under Michael Carrick in the second half, comfortably sitting in 3rd place in the Premier League. He now looks to build upon this with England in the upcoming World Cup. Gundogan a veteran now in this Germany side, has featured at 2 World Cups, 2018 and 2022 and won 18 major trophies across his career.
All midfielders started humbly, going to win some of football’s major prizes, and Mainoo began to chart his path to become one of the game’s greatest midfielders.
Forwards
These forwards have the most inspiring journeys out of all the plsyers so far and truly epitomise the development path possible throughout the grassroots and non-league to the top of the game. Top-tier players whose quality has shown through at every level, proving their value by no gimmick. If we are talking about humble beginnings, none other brings definition to this other than Ndiaye and Kone. They summarise the power of football and what story can be written combining raw talent with immense, consistent hard work.
Illiman Ndiaye, the recent CAF African Cup of Nations winner 2025 with Senegal in a controversial final, will look to build on this feat with Senegal at this World Cup, which would be his second. Senegal are in a group with 2018 World Cup winners France, Norway, and Iraq. Senegal beat France at the opening game of Group A in the 2002 world and will face each other again in what will prove to be a very competitive game.
Kone hasn’t made the Ivory Coast squad, but his rise has been wild and it’s only a matter of time before he gets his first World Cup appearance with the Ivory Coast. He’s had the purest rise from non-league football, playing with Athletic Newham in the 9th tier of English football and is now playing with QPR in the Championship.
So there we have it, a World Cup squad built from players who with grassroots foundations. English players feature prominently throughout which is a testament to the strength of the English football pyramid and its competitiveness, where gems are uncovered and built at almost every level from grassroots/Sunday league upwards.
African players also feature strongly, reflecting a system where street football and school-based development produce high volumes of raw talent, quickly identified through extensive scouting networks and often fast-tracked into European academies or professional setups via hubs in countries like Senegal, Ghana and Ivory Coast. Football academies such as Right to Dream in Ghana are examples of this, which have produced amazing talent such as Mohammed Kudus, who is set to miss this World Cup with Ghana due to injury.
South American players are less visible in this list, not due to a lack of talent but because many are absorbed early into elite club academies in Brazil and Argentina or fast-tracked into senior football and then quickly exported to Europe by clubs such as Flamengo, Palmeiras and River Plate. As a result, players like Endrick, Rodrygo and Vinícius Júnior often bypass the kind of long grassroots-to-professional pathway seen elsewhere, entering structured elite systems much earlier in their development.
There are different pathways that players take to reach a World Cup. Grassroots football is one of those pathways. Across each continent, the pathways vary a lot. From structured leagues and Sunday league football, to street football and fast-tracked academy systems. Through players in every position, there’s no single route to the World Cup, but common themes of talent being spotted early, moving quickly through systems, and adapting to higher levels until they reach the international stage.