The AUF has asked FIFA to recognize Fernando Muslera as a legend after he reached five World Cup appearances, a milestone that places the Uruguay goalkeeper in a very small group and puts his name back at the center of the buildup to 2026. Ignacio Alonso said it makes sense that Muslera should be treated as a legend once a player reaches a fifth World Cup.
The timing matters because Uruguay is already headed into the Copa Mundial de la FIFA 2026 in Group H, and Muslera is in the squad again for the tournament in Estados Unidos, México y Canadá. Uruguay will open against Arabia Saudita on Monday, June 15, 2026, at Miami Stadium, face Cabo Verde on Sunday, June 21, 2026, at the same venue, and close the group stage against España on Friday, June 26, 2026, at Estadio Guadalajara.
Muslera’s case is unusual even by World Cup standards. He was on Uruguay’s list for Sudáfrica 2010, Brasil 2014, Rusia 2018, Qatar 2022 and the 2026 edition, but he did not play a minute in Sudáfrica 2010. That still leaves him as the first and only Uruguayan footballer to have been part of five World Cups, which is why the AUF moved to seek a formal recognition from FIFA rather than simply celebrate the number privately.
FIFA’s own rule gives a special patch on the shirt to players who reach five World Cup participations, and that is the exact threshold Muslera has already crossed. What is not clear is whether FIFA has already accepted the AUF request or whether the recognition will go beyond the symbolic patch and into the legend status Alonso described. The answer matters because it would confirm whether Muslera receives the distinction now, before the tournament begins, or only after the fact.
Alonso tried to frame the milestone in historical terms, saying that when he was a child the only player he knew who had managed five World Cups was Antonio Carbajal, and adding that Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Guillermo Ochoa have now reached a sixth. He also said Muslera is one of the players touched by World Cup history itself, and that he deserves to be considered a legend for having been part of five competitions. For Uruguay, the request turns Muslera’s final stretch into more than another call-up. It becomes a formal claim that one of its longest-serving figures belongs in a category FIFA already reserves for very few.
