Ali Al-Hamadi is the first Iraqi player to feature in the Premier League, and that alone makes Iraq's 26-man World Cup squad stand out. The other obvious headline is Zidane Iqbal, whose path from Manchester United to Utrecht gives the group a distinctly European edge. Iraq qualified for the World Cup for the first time in 40 years, and Graham Arnold now has a squad that opens against Norway before meetings with France and Senegal.
Why Al-Hamadi and Iqbal matter
Al-Hamadi's place is more than a neat trivia point. It gives Iraq a player who has already broken one barrier for the country, even if the larger test now comes on the international stage. Iqbal brings a different kind of value. The BBC report noted that the Manchester-born midfielder came through United's academy, made one Champions League appearance and then joined Utrecht in 2023, where he played 18 times last season.
That is a useful profile for Iraq because it fits the shape of this squad. It is not built around a single headline name or a single league. It has players coming in from different systems, with different levels of top-level exposure. The selection also shows Arnold is willing to leave out defenders who might have been expected to travel, with Dundee United's Dario Naamo among the omissions after his recent switch from Finland.
The group leaves little room for error
The fixtures are immediate and unforgiving. Iraq start Group I against Norway in Boston on 16 June 2026, face France in Philadelphia on 22 June, then finish against Senegal in Toronto on 26 June. That schedule matters because it gives the squad almost no space to settle in before the level rises.
There is also a practical point here. The team have some useful European experience in the mix, but the draw asks for more than a good story. If Al-Hamadi's milestone and Iqbal's route from Manchester to Utrecht are the human details that make this squad interesting, the real test is whether Arnold can turn them into something competitive across three straight heavyweight games.
For Iraq, the opening match against Norway will tell us plenty, and the rest of Group I should be even harder.
Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →
