Hirving “Chucky” Lozano will not play for Mexico at the 2026 FIFA World Cup after Javier Aguirre left the veteran forward out of his final squad. The decision ends a route that had once seemed routine for one of the most recognizable attackers of his generation.
Lozano, 30, had no injury when he was omitted, but he had struggled to keep a regular rhythm of competition in the months before the tournament. His situation with San Diego FC kept him out of Mexico’s first team for a prolonged stretch, and Aguirre and his staff removed him from the preliminary list before settling on their final group.
That choice matters because Lozano had been one of Mexico’s most important players for years. He debuted for the senior national team in 2016, has 18 goals in 75 matches for El Tri, and already had two World Cup appearances behind him, in Russia in 2018 and Qatar in 2022.
His name still carries weight in Mexico for what he did in 2018, when he scored the winning goal in the group-stage 1-0 victory over Germany. This time, though, Mexico opted for players who had competed more consistently through the season as it prepared to host matches during the tournament, a sign that availability and form outweighed reputation.
The omission leaves Mexico without a proven international scorer who has spent nearly a decade in the national setup and who is identified as the franchise player of San Diego FC. Lozano now has to find steady minutes again if he wants another path back into Aguirre’s plans, but the immediate reality is simpler: Mexico has moved into 2026 without him.
