Hirving “Chucky” Lozano excluded from Mexico’s preliminary World Cup roster

Mexico national team manager Javier Aguirre has revealed his preliminary 55-man roster for the 2026 World Cup, with San Diego FC winger Hirving “Chucky” Lozano arguably the most notable omission from the list. Led by Fulham’s Raul Jimenez, Fenerbahçe’s Edson Alvarez and veteran goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa, who is trying to play in his sixth World Cup, Mexico’s squad will be reduced to 26 players by June 1, the official FIFA deadline. Mexico is scheduled to kick off the tournament at home on June 11 against South Africa at the Estadio Banorte. Locker room issues in San Diego Lozano’s ban follow a period of inactivity and reported disciplinary tensions with San Diego FC. Aguirre had previously said that consistent playing time was a necessary condition for selection, one that Lozano was unable to fulfill after falling out of favor with his club’s coaching staff earlier this year. Lozano had a promising start to the club’s first season in MLS, but internal friction became public in October following reports of a locker room altercation with head coach Mikey Varas. His final appearance to date for the club came as a substitute in San Diego’s 3–1 playoff loss to the Vancouver Whitecaps. Squad depth and injury concerns Rodrigo Huescas, a rising star in the Danish Superliga, will miss the tournament as he continues to recover from a torn ACL suffered in a Champions League match in late 2025. Other injury-related absences from Mexico’s preliminary list include Cruz Azul defender Jesús ‘Chiquete’ Orozco and Club América goalkeeper Luis Angel Malagón. In contrast, Aguirre included several players who recently returned from injury layoffs, such as Dynamo Moscow’s Luis Chávez, RSC Anderlecht’s César Huerta and Celtic’s Julián Araujo. The coach also opted to strengthen his goalkeeping depth, bringing in six goalkeepers in total, including José Antonio Rodríguez and Carlos Moreno. Increase in the number of naturalized players and dual nationals Continuing the trend of naturalized players and dual nationals in the squad, the squad includes Germán Berterame from Inter Miami, Julián Quiñones from Al-Qadsiah and Álvaro Fidalgo from Real Betis. This trio represents a core of talent which has been exported abroad after having largely dominated the Liga MX in recent seasons, with Fidalgo notably being called upon to assume an attacking role in midfield. They are joined by several Mexican-American prospects, including Chivas’ Brian Gutiérrez and Richard Ledezma, as well as Atlético Madrid’s Obed Vargas. Issues between Liga MX and the Mexican Football Federation While 12 players from Liga MX had already been confirmed as “locks” for the team in a deal with domestic clubs, players like Tigres’ Diego Lainez, Toluca’s Marcel Ruiz and Club América’s Érick Sánchez were added to the preliminary list, likely as contingency options in case of injuries before the final submission in June. Last week, the Mexican Football Federation threatened to exclude any player based in Liga MX from the World Cup roster if they did not report for the national team. This came after Aguirre revealed a 20-man squad for a pre-World Cup training camp, when Toluca stars Jesús Gallardo and Alexis Vega stayed with their club ahead of a Concacaf Champions Cup semi-final against LAFC rather than reporting for camp. This led the Mexican Football Federation to issue a statement and call for a press conference on May 6 to issue an ultimatum. “As requested by the coaching staff, any player who does not participate in training camp today will be excluded from the World Cup roster,” the statement said. Aguirre also spoke to the media at a press conference the same day. “Whoever doesn’t come will be eliminated from the World Cup. That’s something we can’t be flexible on, at least,” Aguirre said. By nightfall on May 6, all 20 players called by Aguirre to camp were present. Final preparations Before kicking off the World Cup, Aguirre and his men will take part in clashes against Ghana on May 22, Australia on May 30 and Serbia on June 4. Mexico will begin the World Cup group stage against South Africa on June 11, then face South Korea on June 18 and Czechia on June 24.