Spain pencil in return date for Lamine Yamal at World Cup 2026 after meeting with Barcelona

TL;DR

Lamine Yamal is recovering from a hamstring injury and will miss Spain's first two World Cup 2026 matches. He is expected to return for the final group game against Uruguay.

Key points

Lamine Yamal is sidelined with a hamstring injury.
Spain's medical team discussed his recovery with Barcelona.
Yamal will miss the first two World Cup matches against Cape Verde and Saudi Arabia.
He is expected to play in the final group game against Uruguay.

Lamine YamalSpainBarcelonaCape Verde

Lamine Yamal of Spain during the international friendly match between Spain and Egypt prior to the FIFA World Cup, at RCD Stadium on March 31, 2026, in Barcelona, Spain. (Photo by Gongora/NurPhoto via Getty Images) | NurPhoto via Getty Images Barcelona and Spain held a meeting about Lamine Yamal’s fitness on Friday to discuss his recovery ahead of World Cup 2026. The teenager is currently sidelined with a hamstring problem but will be part of Luis de la Fuente’s squad for the tournament. Two of Spain’s medical team, Claudio Vázquez and Carlos Cruz, dropped into Barca on Friday to talk with Yamal and Dr Ricard Pruna and look at potential return dates, according to Diario Sport. Yamal’s recovery is said to be going well and there’s no desire to rush him back. The current thinking is that the will miss Spain’s first two games of the tournament against Cape Verde and Saudi Arabia. The Barcelona star will then make his first appearance of the World Cup in the final group game against and will hopefully then be in great condition for the rest of the tournament, should Spain progress. Yamal is obviously eager to play in his first World Cup but is being advised by the medics that “it is more worthwhile to miss the first two games instead of rushing and taking risks due to the high risk of relapse that exists.”

Q&A

When will Lamine Yamal return to play for Spain in World Cup 2026?

Lamine Yamal is expected to return for Spain's final group game against Uruguay.

What injury is Lamine Yamal currently recovering from?

Lamine Yamal is recovering from a hamstring injury.

Why is Lamine Yamal missing the first two games of World Cup 2026?

Yamal is missing the first two games to avoid the risk of a relapse in his hamstring injury.