Real Sociedad will once again have four players at a World Cup, something that had not happened in 12 years
The presence of Takefusa Kubo, Mikel Oyarzabal, Luka Sucic and Gonçalo Guedes at the 2026 tournament returns Real Sociedad to a World Cup snapshot that had not been repeated for twelve years. The txuri urdin club had not fielded such a large delegation at a World Cup since then.
The countdown to the 2026 World Cup also leaves club snapshots, those that connect the present with memory and old glories. In the case of Real Sociedad, the stat has the feel of a golden era: four of its players will travel to the big event, a mark the club had not reached in 12 years.
The picture is made up of Takefusa Kubo, Mikel Oyarzabal, Luka Sucic and Gonçalo Guedes, a group that puts the txuri urdin side among the teams with the biggest presence in the tournament. It is no small detail at a World Cup that, as always, turns clubs into a living atlas of international football.
A delegation that connects present and memory
In the World Cup ecosystem, when a club contributes several names to the planet's biggest competition, it is usually a sign of competitive strength, projection and prestige. Real are living that feeling again, one that links them to the time when their players were part of national teams with ambition and pedigree.
This kind of record feeds the nostalgia of the big tournaments: fans do not just follow national shirts, they also track the impact of their clubs on the biggest stage. And there Real Sociedad is regaining a presence that speaks well of its present, but also of its ability to place players on the most demanding stage.
The World Cup as a museum of records and curiosities
The World Cup has always been fertile ground for curious statistics and anecdotes that outlive the calendar. In fact, the World Cup kicking off this Thursday, June 11 once again puts the spotlight on those rankings that fascinate football so much:
- the tallest player,
- the oldest,
- the least valuable,
- the most sent off.
Beyond their colorful side, these numbers are a reminder of why the World Cup is a unique competition: each edition brings together thousands of players, but only a few are forever tied to a mark, a figure or a rarity.
That historical dimension also produces names that transcend their national teams. Fabio Cannavaro, world champion with Italy and 2006 Ballon d'Or winner, returns to the place where he was
