Winger misses tournament due to hamstring injury.

Brighton winger Kaoru Mithoma has not reached the remaining bid of the Japan team for the World Cup 2026.

The 28-year-old footballer recovered from a hamstring injury last year in the Premier League match against Wolverhampton, in which Brighton beat 3:0. Due to his resignation, Mitoma will also miss the club's final matches in the English Championship against Leeds United and Manchester United.

The head coach of the Japanese national team, Hajime Moriyasu, voted on the application of 26 players, up to which Wataru Endo from Liverpool, Daichi Kamada from Cristal Palace, Ao Tanaka from Leeds and Daizen Maeda from Celtic..

OFFICIEL! LA LISTE DU JAPON? POUR LA COUPE DU MONDE 2026! MITOMA ET MINAMINO SONT FORFAITS! @AlterFutbol pic. twitter.

com/Dx0k3zR2e6 — Actu Foot (@ActuFoot_) May 15, 2026 Earlier, Brighton coach Fabian Gurtzeler said that the club needed to “be patient” with Mitomi’s return, which is the exact term for the player’s return.

In the group stage of the World Championship, Japan plays against the Netherlands 14 worms, Tunisia - 21 worms and Sweden - 26 worms.

World Championship 2026 starts on 11th. The tournament will now be held with the participation of 48 teams, and the USA, Canada and Mexico will be its rulers.