Name: Mohammad Rashid Mazaheri

Position: Goalkeeper

Nation: Iran

I struggled to find a goalkeeper to fit this category, to be honest. Whilst previously Asmir Begovic has spoken about his experience fleeing Bosnia and Herzegovina in the early 90’s due to conflict, there are very few stories like that at the 2026 World Cup. So I thought I’d include a goalkeeper who can’t be these due to political persecution instead. Mohammad Rashid Mazaheri, born on 18 May 1989 in Gachsaran, Iran, is a 6ft 4in goalkeeper who represented the Iranian national team between 2015 and 2021. He was part of Iran’s squad at the 2018 World Cup in Russia, but spent much of his international career behind the country’s undisputed number one, Alireza Beiranvand. He also kept goal for several top domestic clubs throughout his career.

Name: Amar Dedić 

Position: Rightback

Nation: Bosnia and Herzegovina

Dedić was born in 2002 in Zell am See, a small alpine town in Austria, to parents originally from Bosnia and Herzegovina. His mother is from Lišnja near Prnjavor, and his father is from the Gračanica area; both regions were deeply affected by the Bosnian War of the 1990s, which drove hundreds of thousands of Bosnians to seek refuge in Austria. Growing up as a child of Bosnian immigrants, Dedić was faced with a choice of nationality and made a clear statement of pride in his roots, publicly thanking the Austrians but declaring he wanted to play only for Bosnia and Herzegovina. He began his football journey through local clubs before joining Sturm Graz and eventually Red Bull Salzburg’s academy.

Dedić established himself in Salzburg’s defence, winning the Austrian Bundesliga in the 2022–23 season and going on to accumulate over 100 appearances for the club, including in the UEFA Champions League.

Name: Thomas Deng

Position: Centreback

Nation: Australia

Born in Nairobi, Kenya in 1997 to South Sudanese parents, Deng was just six years old when his family fled the civil war in Sudan and were granted refugee status in Australia, settling in Adelaide. His early life straddled displacement and resettlement, yet he quickly turned to football as a way to connect with his new home and community, starting at clubs such as Adelaide Blue Eagles and Western Eagles before moving to Victoria to join Melbourne Victory’s youth setup.

Deng rose rapidly through the ranks at Melbourne Victory, earning his A‑League debut and later spending time on loan at PSV Eindhoven’s U21 side in the Netherlands.

Name: Mykola Matviyenko

Position: Centreback

Nation: Ukraine

Mykola was born in Saky, Crimea, which Russia illegally annexed in 2014. This meant his hometown has been under occupation for over a decade. The situation is made even more painful by his family: his older brother Dmytro, also a professional footballer, stayed in Crimea after the 2014 annexation and took Russian citizenship, going on to play in the Russian-administered Crimean football league. The two brothers effectively ended up on opposite sides of the conflict, with Mykola proudly representing Ukraine at the international level while his brother’s career was absorbed into the Russian system

Matviyenko’s club Shakhtar Donetsk has been one of the conflict’s most visible sporting casualties.

Name: Alphonso Davies

Position: Left Back

Nation: Canada

For me, this is one of the greatest backstories in the history of the World Cup. The story began in Buduburam, a Ghanaian refugee camp, where Davies was born after his parents had fled the civil war in Liberia. The family had to search for clean water and food and had to fight to simply stay alive. His father, Debeah recalled, “It was hard to live because the only way you survive sometimes is you have to carry guns.” When Alphonso was five, his family secured resettlement in Edmonton, Canada, where he learned to play football through a community programme for children who couldn’t afford a kit or transport. He later said: “Every time I step on the pitch, it’s for them.”

From that hut in Buduburam to the pinnacle of world football, the journey is extraordinary. Davies joined Bayern Munich for an MLS record fee in 2018 and went on to win five Bundesliga titles and the UEFA Champions League.

Name: Luka Modric

Position: Midfield

Nation: Croatia

Personally, my favourite player on this team. Modric was born in 1985 in Zadar and grew up in the remote area of Modric on the slopes of Mount Velebit, raised largely by his grandfather, also named Luka. When the Croatian War of Independence erupted, the family’s world collapsed. Modric’s grandfather was executed by Serb rebels, and after his death, the family fled to the coastal town of Zadar. His grandfather was killed by Serb forces, the house was burned, and the family sought refuge in a hotel in Zadar, some 40 kilometres away. It was in the corridors of that refugee hotel, with shells falling on the city, that a six-year-old Modrić could be found constantly playing with a football; going to sleep with it too, according to his first coach. 

Name: Heorhii Sudakov

Position: Midfield

Nation: Ukraine

Heorhii Sudakov was born in Brianka, a town in eastern Ukraine, on the 1st of September 2002. He began playing football at Sokil Brianka before moving to Kharkiv in 2014, when the war and occupation in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions forced many families to relocate. There, he joined Metalist’s academy, and in 2017, he was signed by Shakhtar Donetsk, where he progressed through the youth and reserve teams before reaching the first team.

Sudakov’s football achievements have been impressive. He made his senior debut for Shakhtar in October 2020 in a Champions League win over Real Madrid, then developed into one of the club’s most important midfielders.

Name: Granit Xhaka

Position: Midfield

Nation: Switzerland

Xhaka was born in Basel, Switzerland, in 1992 to a Kosovan-Albanian family. He began his career at FC Basel, where he developed into one of Switzerland’s most promising young midfielders before moving abroad to Borussia Mönchengladbach, Arsenal, and later Bayer Leverkusen and, most recently, Sunderland FC in the English Premier League. He has also been a long-time leader for the Switzerland national team and his club teams, helping shape the side across several major international tournaments.

With Basel, he won the Swiss Super League and established himself as a top young player. In Germany, he became captain at Borussia Mönchengladbach at just 22, showing early leadership qualities.

Name: Xherdan Shaqiri

Position: Right Wing

Nation: Switzerland

Xherdan Shaqiri is a Swiss footballer who was born in Gjilan, Kosovo, in 1991 and grew up in Switzerland after his family was forced to move there during the Balkan war. He began his football journey with local youth clubs before joining FC Basel, where his talent quickly stood out. From a young age, he was known for his low centre of gravity, quick dribbling, powerful left foot, and ability to create chances from wide areas or attacking midfield. His background and rise through Swiss football made him one of the country’s most recognisable sporting figures.

Shaqiri has won several league titles with Basel, then moved to Bayern Munich, where he added major honours, including the Bundesliga and UEFA Champions League.

Name: Awer Mabil

Position: Centre Forward

Nation: Australia

Mabil is an Australian footballer who was born in Kenya to South Sudanese parents and grew up in a refugee camp before moving to Australia. It was here that he developed his football skills after settling in Adelaide. He joined local football academies and began to build a reputation as a quick, fearless winger or centre forward with strong dribbling ability and a direct style of play. 

He rose through Adelaide United before moving to Europe, where he played for FC Midtjylland in Denmark and won major domestic honours. He later had spells in Spain, Portugal, Turkey, and other leagues, continuing to show his pace and attacking threat. On the international stage, he became a regular for the Australian national team, representing the Socceroos in major tournaments and qualifying campaigns. He is widely respected for his energy, work rate, and ability to make an impact in important matches.

Name: Artem Dovbyk

Position: Centre Forward

Nation: Ukraine

Artem Dovbyk was born in 1997 in Cherkasy, a city on the Dnieper River in central Ukraine. Growing up in the years following Ukrainian independence from the Soviet Union, his childhood was shaped by a country navigating enormous economic and social upheaval, with communities relying heavily on each other for support. From a young age, football offered both escape and aspiration, and he joined the FC Cherkaskyi Dnipro academy as a boy, where rigorous training emphasised technical proficiency and physical conditioning. His idol was Andriy Shevchenko. When the Russian invasion of Ukraine began in 2022, Dovbyk made a temporary move to Dynamo Kyiv, who were playing charity matches across Europe to stay in form and raise funds for their war-torn country.

After finishing as the Ukrainian Premier League’s top scorer with 24