Footballers' Strategies for Appearing at the 2026 World Cup

Age does not necessarily become a barrier for football players to realize their desire to compete in the World Cup. Some of them still believe that their performance has not faded, thus they employ various methods to break into the national team. The most common method is to switch clubs so that their potential remains monitored by coaches.

Sergio Ramos announced his intention to leave Monterrey, the Mexican League club he has represented since the beginning of this year. The contract of the former Real Madrid defender will expire at the end of 2025. Monterrey does not plan to extend Ramos' contract due to the high salary that must be paid. The 39-year-old defender earns up to 4 million United States dollars (approximately Rp 66.6 billion) per year.

For Ramos, consistent playing time in a league that is closer to the Spanish style and in top-tier competition could convince Luis de la Fuente (the Spanish coach) to consider a call-up to the national team.

The salary allocation for Ramos is planned to be used by Monterrey to invest in other aspects, particularly young players. In response, Ramos personally wishes to leave Mexico. Family factors are a consideration for him to return to his hometown in Spain. On the other hand, Ramos wants to continue his career in Europe.

"The final reason (playing in Europe) isn't far-fetched. For Ramos, consistent playing time in a league more suited to the Spanish style and in a top-flight competition could convince Luis de la Fuente (Spain coach) to consider a national team call-up," Spanish media outlet Diario AS reported on Friday (November 28, 2025).

Ramos has performed quite impressively in the Mexican League. In less than a year playing for Monterrey, he has recorded 31 appearances and scored seven goals. Ramos has also played a role in guiding his teammates to reach the round of 16 in the Club World Cup in the middle of the year.

However, for Ramos, greater effort is required to break into the Spanish national team. Simply playing in the Mexican League will not increase his chances of being called up. This is because the level of competition there cannot be compared to that of the Spanish League or other top European leagues.

Ramos may have been inspired by the experience of Aymeric Laporte. The former Manchester City defender received a call-up to the Spanish national team for the World Cup qualifiers last month. Laporte had previously played for Al Nassr but decided to return to La Liga due to a deadlock in salary negotiations.

Unexpectedly, the decision to return home brought his potential to the attention of Luis De La Fuente. Laporte was then selected to replace the injured Real Madrid defender Dean Huijsen.

As a veteran player, Ramos has achieved a great deal at the international level with Spain. He was also part of the Spanish national team that won the World Cup in 2010 in South Africa. However, the World Cup always manages to entice players, even those who are nearing the twilight of their careers. It is unclear what else Ramos is pursuing in the World Cup, but one thing is certain: his competitive spirit has not diminished with age.

He last played for Spain in 2021 and has not received a call-up for the 2020 European Championship, the 2022 World Cup, and the 2024 European Championship. The next destination for Ramos is not yet definitively known, but several options are being explored. Ramos has the opportunity to play for AS Roma or Bayer Leverkusen.

Roma is currently striving to claim the Serie A title, bolstered by the best defense in Italy. The experience and extensive leadership aura of Ramos could serve as a crucial asset for Roma's defense, which is relatively composed of young players.

Meanwhile, Leverkusen is recovering from a poor start to the Bundesliga season. Following a coaching change, Leverkusen aims to reduce the eight-point gap from the league leaders Bayern Munich. Leverkusen lost several key players in the summer transfer market. Ramos is considered a suitable temporary recruit who can provide direction and stability within the team.

If explored further, playing in European competitions is not the only way to receive a call-up to the national team. Andre-Pierre Gignac has proven that playing in the Mexican League can also lead to representing the French national team in the 2016 European Championship.

At that time, Gignac made a very unusual decision in the world of football. After proving his sharpness by scoring 21 goals for Marseille in the French League, Gignac surprisingly rejected an offer to extend his contract and chose instead to cross over to the American continent to play in the Mexican League.

Many parties do not understand Gignac's line of thought. His sharpness has not faded; he is still 29 years old, not yet too old for a striker. However, his decision is final. He has firmly chosen the Mexican club, Tigres UANL, as the next port in his career.

Gignac's impressive performance, scoring 44 goals in 18 months, has helped Tigres secure numerous prestigious titles. French coach Didier Deschamps found it hard to resist Gignac's charm, leading him to decide to call him up to the national team for the 2016 European Championship. Deschamps needed a player to replace Olivier Giroud.

Although, at that time, Deschamps' decision was also influenced by intrigues with Karim Benzema and the declining performance of Kevin Gamerio, the call-up of Gignac remains an anomaly.

The summons proves the argument that a player from an obscure league still has the opportunity to return to the national team, provided they maintain their performance at the highest level.