Four years ago, Danny Rohl packed his bags and headed for Qatar with aspirations of lifting the World Cup. This summer, he will watch on from afar as his players live their own international dreams.
The campaign ended in disappointment for Rohl and boss Hansi Flick as Germany suffered an early exit. He will hope that the six players he has seen jet off for America will be able to last longer and go further on the biggest stage in the game.
There are several former players – as well as Dick Advocaat, the Curacao manager - with links to Ibrox that supporters will keep an eye on over the course of the tournament. Niko Katic is part of the Bosnia and Herzegovina squad, for example, while Derek Cornelius made the cut with Canada despite ending the term out of favour at club level. Amad Diallo will represent the Ivory Coast, Malik Tillman will wear the Stars and Stripes and Switzerland have selected Cedric Itten. There is no place in the Ecuador group for Jose Cifuentes.
Here are the six members of Rohl’s squad that will pull on their international jerseys over the coming weeks. Who will return to Auchenhowie with the best stories to tell from their summer exploits?
SCOTLAND
Group C fixtures: Haiti (June 14), Morocco (June 19), Brazil (June 24)
Four players – Liam Kelly, John Souttar, Findlay Curtis and Lawrence Shankland – will look to make themselves national heroes. Will history be made?
Kelly is likely to have a watching brief and has made the trip as third choice this summer. Angus Gunn was handed the No.1 jersey and looks set to start ahead of Craig Gordon.
Souttar started the friendly win over Curacao and played the first 45 minutes. He is coming off the back of a disappointing end – both individually and collectively – to the Premiership campaign and he is not guaranteed a spot for Clarke's side. Scott McKenna looks nailed on and Souttar is competing with Grant Hanley and Jack Hendry for the other jersey.
The fortunes should be different for Curtis and Shankland. Both were on target at Hampden last weekend as Curtis opened his international account and Shankland scored a brace. The Ibrox duo are firmly in contention to start against Haiti in Boston and should have key roles to play over the three group stage fixtures.
Clarke will round off his preparations with a friendly against Bolivia in New Jersey on Saturday night. Former Ibrox defender Nathan Patterson is also part of the squad but Billy Gilmour was cruelly ruled out of the World Cup after suffering a knee injury against Curacao.
Connor Barron was one of the standby options for Scotland. The Ibrox midfielder, as well as Lennon Miller and Andy Irving, were overlooked as Clarke selected Tyler Fletcher following his debut at Hampden.
“To move him above the other three was difficult,” Clarke said. “But, after 62 years and a long time in the game, I have to trust my judgement.
"And at this moment in time I just felt that Tyler had shown in that camp that he can be a big player for now and a big player for the future. Including Tyler was a tough decision but like I say, I have to trust my judgement.”
BELGIUM
Group G: Egypt (June 15), Iran (June 21), New Zealand (June 27)
There is an argument that Nico Raskin has produced a higher level of performance for his country than his club over the last year or so. Will that continue as the Red Devils finally look to make the breakthrough on the international stage after a host of recent failures by a star-studded squad?
Raskin started and played 78 minutes as Rudi Garcia’s side beat Croatia earlier this week. He was replaced by Axel Witsel in the middle of the park as Youri Tielemans and Romelu Lukaku were on target in a 2-0 victory. Belgium now face Tunisia this afternoon in their final warm-up match ahead of a group stage that holds few fears.
“You go to the national team thinking you have some good momentum,” Raskin told the Rangers Review in an exclusive interview . “I didn’t arrive trying to be shy. I just went there trying to be me. I had a good connection directly with the manager, who said to me ‘I really like what you're doing at Rangers. Just come here and be you’. And the boys were great.
“Players like De Bruyne, you know, you can give them the ball and they'll just do something really good. When I go there, I don't need to be scoring goals, I don't need to be running forward, I don't need to be too much.
🗣️ "It's a remarkable recovery from Rangers"
Nico Raskin scores and Rangers come from behind to lead Falkirk 3-2 ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/gvexfijOMm— Sky Sports Scotland (@ScotlandSky) April 12, 2026
"I just need to be me and try to be the best version of me as a defensive midfielder. You just play the ball to them, support them if they need it. If not, I'm doing my job.”
Those minutes against Croatia were the first that Raskin played since the defeat to Hearts at Tynecastle last month. The midfielder played no part in the defeats to Celtic and Hibernian or the win over Falkirk on the final day of the Premiership campaign due to a muscle injury.
The Rangers Review revealed in December that Raskin is contracted to Ibrox until the summer of 2028, and not 2027 as initially believed. As a result, there is no time pressure on Rohl and the board to make a decision over his future in the immediate aftermath of the World Cup. A positive showing could see the 25-year-old come to the attention of suitors, though, and his position at Rangers is uncertain ahead of the new campaign.
NORWAY
Group I fixtures: Iraq (June 16), Senegal (June 23), France (June 26)
Thelo Aasgaard was a surprise inclusion in the Norway squad. When he was overlooked for the matches with the Netherlands and Switzerland in March, it looked like Aasgaard would miss out on the World Cup. He ended the campaign with goals against Hibernian, a fine free-kick from the edge of the area, and Falkirk, as he converted from the spot, and was given the call by boss Stale Solbakken.
Overall, it was a mixed campaign. There were moments of quality from Aasgaard, but others where his mentality and work rate were questioned. He is expected to remain part of Rohl’s squad after the World Cup and will look to contribute significantly more as Rangers gear up for another crack at the Premiership title.
Thelo Aasgaard with the winner v Motherwell in December 🙌 pic.twitter.com/Hfbikx4fBQ
— SPFL (@spfl) April 26, 2026
His inclusion in the international squad sparked some debate in his homeland. Indeed, Aasgaard chose to have his say on the matter in recent days.
"I don't read the comments,” he said. “I only know about it now because it has been pointed out to me. It comes when you play for such a big club as Rangers. It's normal. I try to talk to good people like Norway manager Stale Solbakken and Danny Rohl. They only have good things to say to me, I focus on that.
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“The season was a bit up and down with Rangers, but I think I played well for Norway. I'm very happy to be here with the squad. I had to be strong in my head for some periods, but there were many good matches too. I can't wait for the World Cup. I was with the whole family when I saw the video that announced the squad."
Aasgaard got the final 25 minutes of the friendly win over Sweden this week. A double from Jørgen Strand Larsen and an Antonio Nusa strike give Norway the victory and they will face Morocco on Sunday to finalise their preparations for the tournament.
The opener with Iraq is a must-win given that the meeting with Senegal follows a week later. Norway will hope to have their place in the knock-out rounds secure before they face tournament favourites France in the final group match.
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