Lennart Karl Ruled Out of 2026 World Cup Due to Injury

Germany’s World Cup plans have taken an early hit. According to German newspaper Bild, Lennart Karl will miss the 2026 FIFA World Cup after suffering an injury in training on Friday, a blow that forces Julian Nagelsmann into a late reshuffle of his squad.

Karl picked up the problem during a session with the national team, and the damage is serious enough that he is expected to be withdrawn from the tournament party. Germany will now have to nominate a replacement before the World Cup kicks off.

It is a cruel twist for a player who had quietly become one of Bayern Munich’s most useful attacking weapons. Not always a headline name, not always in the starting XI, but increasingly impossible to ignore.

The 22-year-old attacking midfielder carved out a key role in a Bayern side stacked with stars. He was directly involved in 17 goals across the season through goals and assists, numbers that underline why Nagelsmann trusted him as an impact option and a flexible piece in the final third. He could come off the bench and change the tempo of a game, drift between the lines, or stretch a tired defence.

“Lennart suffered an injury in training and, honestly, it doesn't look good. We have to wait for the diagnosis and then decide whether he can realistically make the World Cup or if we need to call up a replacement,” the Germany coach said, laying out the stark choice that has now been made for him.

For a national team trying to claw its way back to the top of the international game, the timing is painful. Germany enter this World Cup with the weight of recent failures on their shoulders, determined to prove that the era of early exits and underachievement is over. Karl was never going to be the poster boy of that mission, but he offered something coaches crave at tournaments: a reliable, inventive option who could tilt a tight match from the bench.

Now Nagelsmann must look elsewhere for that spark. The system remains, the ambition remains, but one of the more intriguing pieces of Germany’s attacking puzzle has been removed before a ball is kicked.