Although France-born players make up the vast majority of the foreign-born talent on Algeria‘s 2026 World Cup squad, they aren’t the only foreign-born players on Vladimir Petkovic’s side.
Algeria are among the top five national teams with the most overseas-born players at the 2026 World Cup. The Desert Warriors may not come close to Curacao, which lead the tournament by a landslide. Curacao have 25 Dutch-born players representing the nation.
Algeria do not have as many France-born or foreign-born players, but they still have their fair share. Algeria feature 13 players born in France and 16 born outside the country entirely. Many of them, like Riyad Mahrez and Luca Zidane, play crucial roles on Petkovic’s team and may go a long way toward the Fennecs’ success at the 2026 World Cup.
France’s presence isn’t exclusive to Algeria, though, as “The Hexagon” has significant influence on the tournament. In fact, 76 France-born players are representing countries other than France at the 2026 World Cup.
Zineddine Luca Zidane of Algeria.
Full list of French and foreign players on Algeria’s roster
Algeria’s 13 French-born soccer players are the most in any single country in the 2026 World Cup, outside of France (obviously) who have 23 out of their 26 players being homegrown.
The full list of Algerian players born in France includes: goalkeepers Luca Zidane—the son of French legend Zinedine Zidane—and Melvin Mastil, as well as Aissa Mandi, Rayan Ait-Nouri, Jaouen Hadjam, Samir Chergui, Nabil Bentaleb, Fares Chaibi, Houssem Aouar, Riyad Mahrez, Amine Gouiri, Anis Hadj Moussa, and Fares Ghdejemis.
The Desert Warriors’ 26-man roster for the 2026 World Cup also includes three players born outside both Algeria and France: Rafik Belghali (Belgium), Ibrahim Maza (Germany), and Ramiz Zerrouki (Netherlands).
Teams in Group J
Sharing Group J at the 2026 World Cup with Argentina, Jordan, and Austria, the Fennecs have more foreign-born players than any other team in the group. Although the number is small, Argentina also have a few players born outside the country.
Jordan have some overseas-born players as well, while Austria are one of eight national teams whose rosters are made up entirely of players born in their own country.
