Socceroos to feature players with refugee backgrounds at 2026 World Cup

When Australia takes the pitch at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, its squad will include at least three players who were born as refugees. Mo Touré, Awer Mabil, and Nestory Irankunda each carry stories of displacement and resettlement.

The Socceroos aren’t just quietly including these players. In early June 2026, the team released a video message, co-produced with the Professional Footballers Australia union, that directly addresses rising anti-immigration sentiment in Australia. The message is clear: this squad is proud of where its players come from.

From refugee camps to the World Cup stage

Mo Touré was born in Guinea to Liberian refugees before eventually resettling in Adelaide. Awer Mabil was born in the Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya to South Sudanese parents. Nestory Irankunda was born in a refugee camp in Tanzania.

Mabil has previously represented Australia at a World Cup, making him a veteran of this process. His recall to the 2026 squad comes after a period away from the national team due to injury and fluctuating club form.

The UNHCR connection and a broader message

In late May 2026, the UNHCR announced a symbolic “Gamechanging Team” designed to highlight success stories of refugees through sport. The squad is captained by Alphonso Davies, the Canadian international star who was himself born in a refugee camp in Ghana to Liberian parents before his family resettled in Edmonton. Touré, Mabil, and Irankunda were all named to this symbolic team.

For the Socceroos, the video released in June takes this further by anchoring it in Australia’s domestic context. The video emphasizes pride in the squad’s diverse heritages and positions multiculturalism as a competitive advantage.

What this means beyond the pitch

Australia has a long history of national team players with migrant and refugee roots across multiple sports. What is new is the explicitness of the messaging. Previous generations of refugee-background athletes often had their stories told passively. Here, the players and their union are actively centering those stories and connecting them to a political moment.

Mabil has spoken publicly about what it means to carry the weight of a community’s hopes alongside the normal pressure of international competition.

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