After three matches of CONMEBOL World Cup qualifying, Paraguay had one point. They had drawn one and lost two. They were last in the group, ten teams, bottom of the table, and already staring at another failed campaign. The 2026 World Cup was already beginning to feel like the 2014, 2018, and 2022 World Cups — tournaments Paraguay watched from home.
Then, on matchday eight, they beat Brazil in Asunción.
Then they beat Argentina.
The wins did not arrive elegantly. Nothing about Paraguay's qualifying campaign suggested a team destined for anything. They scraped through the middle of the table, picking up results in front of their own crowd and losing on the road, managing the kind of campaign that CONMEBOL has always rewarded: stubborn, physical, built for survival rather than admiration. They finished sixth — the last automatic spot — 10 points behind group winners Argentina.
It was enough. Sixteen years of absence, ended by pragmatism.
Enciso
Alfaro's squad
Gustavo Alfaro took charge in August 2024, inheriting a side that had collected five points from a possible 18. He did not arrive with grand ambitions about style. He arrived with a promise: "I'd like Paraguay to be the team that nobody wants to face." His debut was a goalless draw in Montevideo against Uruguay. He then lost only once in 12 qualifying matches — 1-0 to Brazil in São Paulo. Along the way, Paraguay beat Brazil 1-0 and Argentina 2-1 at home, the two results that turned a hopeless campaign into a World Cup qualification.
Alfaro built this team from the outside in. Only three of the 26 play in Paraguay's domestic league. Seven are based in Brazil. The rest are scattered across Argentina, the United States, England, France, and the UAE. Alfaro, an Argentine, constructed a squad in his own image — organized, internationally oriented, designed to compete rather than to charm.
The captain is Gustavo Gómez of Palmeiras, a 33-year-old center-back with 88 caps who has won league titles in three countries. He is flanked by Júnior Alonso of Atlético Mineiro, Omar Alderete of Sunderland, and Fabián Balbuena of Grêmio — four experienced central defenders who give Paraguay the foundation on which everything else is built.
Miguel Almirón of Atlanta United is the most recognized name in the squad. The 32-year-old returns to American soil as a World Cup player — he spent years in MLS before his move to Newcastle, and now he is back, playing for Atlanta again alongside his teammate Matías Galarza. Almirón remains the squad's most recognizable player. But at 32, he is no longer its future.
It may belong to Julio Enciso. Paraguay have always produced defenders, organizers, and strikers willing to suffer. What they have rarely produced is a creator capable of deciding matches against elite opposition. Enciso, 22, scored three qualifying goals from Strasbourg and arrives as the most gifted attacking talent Paraguay have developed since Almirón himself. Alfaro built qualification on structure. Progression at the World Cup may depend on imagination.
Kaku — Alejandro Romero Gamarra — brings experience from Al-Ain in the UAE. Diego Gómez of Brighton provides another creative option. Ramón Sosa, now at Palmeiras alongside captain Gómez, adds width from the left. Andrés Cubas of Vancouver Whitecaps and Braian Ojeda of Orlando City give the squad a North American spine.
Álex Arce of Independiente Rivadavia and Isidro Pitta of Red Bull Bragantino — who claimed the final squad spot ahead of Ángel Romero — lead the line alongside Antonio Sanabria of Cremonese.
The last time
Paraguay's last World Cup was 2010, in South Africa. That squad, coached by Gerardo Martino, reached the quarterfinals — the best result in the country's history. They beat Japan on penalties in the round of 16 and then came within a single moment of the semi-finals. Oscar Cardozo had a penalty to put Paraguay ahead against Spain. Iker Casillas saved it. David Villa scored in the 83rd minute. Spain survived, won 1-0, and went on to lift the trophy. Paraguay have never been closer.
The group
Paraguay open against the United States on June 12 at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles — a daunting assignment against the co-hosts. Turkey follow on June 19 at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara. Australia close out the group on June 25, also at Levi's. Two of three matches in the San Francisco Bay Area, the third in LA. Paraguay are unlikely to dominate anyone in this group. That has never been Alfaro's plan.
The squad announcement itself carried more emotion than most. The presentation featured the "poncho de las 60 listas" — a symbol representing the 60 previous squads called up in Paraguay's football history, each thread a different story. The music was by Luis Alberto de Paraná. The song was "Voy Gritando." I am screaming.
One point from three games. Sixteen years away. They are screaming because they are back.
The squad
Goalkeepers: Roberto Fernández (Cerro Porteño), Orlando Gill (San Lorenzo), Gastón Olveira (Olimpia)
Defenders: Omar Alderete (Sunderland), Fabián Balbuena (Grêmio), Juan José Cáceres (Dynamo Moscow), José Canale (Lanús), Gustavo Gómez (Palmeiras), Alexandro Maidana (Talleres), Júnior Alonso (Atlético Mineiro), Gustavo Velázquez (Cerro Porteño)
Midfielders: Miguel Almirón (Atlanta United), Damián Bobadilla (São Paulo), Andrés Cubas (Vancouver Whitecaps), Matías Galarza (Atlanta United), Diego Gómez (Brighton), Kaku (Al-Ain), Maurício (Palmeiras), Braian Ojeda (Orlando City), Ramón Sosa (Palmeiras)
Forwards: Álex Arce (Independiente Rivadavia), Gabriel Ávalos (Independiente), Gustavo Caballero (Portsmouth), Julio Enciso (Strasbourg), Isidro Pitta (Red Bull Bragantino), Antonio Sanabria (Cremonese)
Coach: Gustavo Alfaro | Group D: USA · Australia · Türkiye
Fixtures: Jun 12 v USA — SoFi Stadium, Los Angeles · Jun 19 v Turkey — Levi's Stadium, Santa Clara · Jun 25 v Australia — Levi's Stadium, Santa Clara