Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know that the world’s premier soccer (football) competition is underway. The United States, Mexico, and Canada teamed up to host the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which is currently in the first round of the knockout stage.

While the tournament nears its halfway point in terms of teams eliminated from the field, how many World Cup teams are represented by Penn State Athletics players?

Each player listed below is taken from their sport’s latest roster available on Penn State Athletics’ website, regardless of whether the player is known not to be on the team’s roster for next year (e.g., Gavin McKenna). The year of each roster is also indicated. And no, the United States obviously doesn’t count.

Here’s how Happy Valley represents the world:

Men’s Basketball (2026-27)

• Ivan Jurić — Zagreb, Croatia
• Tim Oboh — London, England

Cross Country (2025)

• Florence Caron — La Malbaie, Quebec, Canada
• Hayley Kitching — Coffs Harbour, Australia
• Sarah Pickering — Newcastle, Australia
• Ada Rand — Sydney, Australia
• Laura Roderick — Sydney, Australia

Men’s Fencing (2025-26)

• Mohamed Yasseen — Tanta, Egypt

Football (2026)

• Nathan Tiyce — Gerringong, Australia

Men’s Golf (2025-26)

• Zach Smith — Brampton, Ontario, Canada

Men’s Gymnastics (2026)

• Ian Raubal — Zurich, Switzerland
• Ritam Malik — Blacktown, Australia

Men’s Hockey (2025-26)

• Jackson Smith — Calgary, Alberta, Canada
• Luke Misa — Oakville, Ontario, Canada
• Aiden Fink — Calgary, Alberta, Canada
• Cade Christenson — Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
• Lev Katzin — Thornhill, Ontario, Canada
• Josh Fleming — Montreal, Quebec, Canada
• Kevin Reidler — Gävle, Sweden
• Nic Chin-DeGraves — Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
• Gavin McKenna — Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada
• Nolan Collins — Whitby, Ontario, Canada
• Shea Van Olm — Calgary, Alberta, Canada

Men’s Lacrosse (2026)

• Liam Matthews — Orangeville, Ontario, Canada
• Mark Watters — Orillia, Ontario, Canada

Men’s Soccer (2026) (Incomplete Roster)

• Joe Sheridan — East Grinstead, England
• Kyler Vojvodic — Port Coquitlam, British Columbia, Canada
• Fredrick Grundin — Täby, Sweden

Men’s Swimming & Diving (2025-26)

• Cooper Morley — Auckland, New Zealand
• Toni Slavica — Sibenik, Croatia

Men’s Tennis (2025-26)

• Reiya Hattori — Nagaokakyo, Japan
• Marcus Schoeman — Brisbane, Australia

Track & Field (2025-26)

• Tayissa Buchanan — Albion Park, Australia
• Gwendolyn Cudmore — Port Colborne, Ontario, Canada
• Marie-Eloise LeClair — Coquitlam, British Columbia, Canada
• Boh Ritchie — New Zealand
• Allon Clay — Fujisawa, Kanagawa, Japan
• Yukichi Ishii — Yachiyo, Chiba, Japan
• Hayley Kitching — Coffs Harbour, Australia
• Sarah Pickering — Newcastle, Australia
• Ada Rand — Sydney, Australia

Men’s Volleyball (2027) (Incomplete Roster)

• Tristan Hassell — Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Wrestling (2025-26)

• Masanosuke Ono — Matsue City, Japan

Women’s Basketball (2026-27)

• Petra Božan — Split, Croatia
• Irene García — Urnieta, Basque Country, Spain

Women’s Fencing (2025-26)

• Eunyu Kim — Seoul, South Korea
• Yuna Tamura — Japan

Field Hockey (2026)

• Lara Pyle — Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

Women’s Golf (2025-26)

• Audrey Lam — Maisières, Belgium
• Myranda Quinton — Burlington, Ontario, Canada
• Zeynep Sualp — Marmaris, Turkey
• Lauren Thompstone — Paris, France

Women’s Hockey (2025-26)

• Taya MacDonald — London, Ontario, Canada
• Grace Outwater — Picton, Ontario, Canada
• Abby Stonehouse — Blenheim, Ontario, Canada
• Mya Vaslet — Stittsville, Ontario, Canada
• Nicole Hall — Stockholm, Sweden
• Taylor Lum — Etobicoke, Ontario, Canada
• Danica Maynard — Lake Country, British Columbia, Canada
• Maddy Campbell — Courtice, Ontario, Canada

Women’s Soccer (2026 Spring Roster)

• Sophia Weixler — Kempten, Germany

Women’s Swimming & Diving (2025-26)

• Grace Brammer — Johannesburg, South Africa

Women’s Tennis (2025-26)

• Jordina Cegarra — Barcelona, Spain
• Maelie Monfils — Paris, France
• Maiko Uchijima — Tokyo, Japan

Results

That totals 62 players from nations that qualified for the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Penn State Athletics’ latest available rosters. Canada easily led the way with the most (thanks, hockey), but here’s the total tally:

• Canada — 26
• Australia — 9
• Japan — 6
• Croatia — 3
• Sweden — 3
• England — 2
• France — 2
• New Zealand — 2
• Spain — 2
• Belgium — 1
• Egypt — 1
• Germany — 1
• South Africa — 1
• South Korea — 1
• Switzerland — 1
• Turkey — 1