{"id":1464959,"date":"2026-06-30T16:30:00","date_gmt":"2026-06-30T15:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/?post_type=cult-corner&#038;p=1464959"},"modified":"2026-06-30T17:12:59","modified_gmt":"2026-06-30T16:12:59","slug":"2026-world-cup-cult-heroes","status":"publish","type":"cult-corner","link":"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/cult-corner\/2026-world-cup-cult-heroes\/","title":{"rendered":"14 cult heroes from the 2026 World Cup so far: From Vozinha to Germany&#8217;s super sub"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/bet\/football-tips\/world-cup-2026-betting-tips-predictions\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">World Cup<\/a> has long been the ultimate proving ground, not just for the elite names, but for lesser-known players looking for their big moment.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This World Cup has been no different, with a host of understated stars and unfancied names from bigger nations pulling out all the stops on the very biggest stage, earning cult hero status along the way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here are 14 such players:<\/p>\n\n\n<h2><a href=\"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/bet\/betting-sites\/stakemate-bet-10-get-20-in-free-bets\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Stakemate Offer<\/a>: Bet \u00a310, get \u00a320 in free bets<\/h2>\r\n<p><a href=\"\/en\/go\/stakemate?q=gb-all-all-wof-s-spo\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-1422508\" src=\"https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/01\/06122108\/image-150-1024x489.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"1024\" height=\"489\" srcset=\"https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/01\/06122108\/image-150-1024x489.png 1024w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/01\/06122108\/image-150-300x143.png 300w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/01\/06122108\/image-150-768x367.png 768w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/01\/06122108\/image-150-1536x733.png 1536w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/01\/06122108\/image-150-400x191.png 400w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/01\/06122108\/image-150-419x200.png 419w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/01\/06122108\/image-150-126x60.png 126w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/01\/06122108\/image-150-150x72.png 150w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/01\/06122108\/image-150-40x19.png 40w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/01\/06122108\/image-150.png 1986w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\r\n<p><strong>How to claim:<\/strong><\/p>\r\n<ol>\r\n<li>Go to Stakemate using <a href=\"\/en\/go\/stakemate?q=gb-all-all-wof-s-spo\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>this link<\/strong><\/a>.<\/li>\r\n<li>Download the app and create your account<\/li>\r\n<li>Place your first bet of \u00a310 or more (minimum odds of 2\/1)<\/li>\r\n<li>Once settled, receive 4 x \u00a35 free bets - minimum 3 selections and 2\/1 odds on each bet.<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n<div class=\"sq-toplist\" data-bookmaker-id=\"1408906\" data-offer-id=\"1408908\">\r\n<div class=\"sq-toplist__items\">\r\n<div class=\"sq-toplist__item\">\r\n<div class=\"sq-toplist__item-tc\">\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>#AD 18+ New Customers Only. Place any \u00a310 bet to qualify, min 2.0 (1\/1) odds. Qualifying bet must settle, excluding cash outs. Bonus credited with 24hrs of settlement. 4 x \u00a35 free bets. Free bets min 3 selections and 3.0 odds. Returns exclude free bet stake. Expiry applies. Full T&amp;Cs apply.<\/em><\/p>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-2026-world-cup-cult-heroes\">2026 World Cup cult heroes<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-vozinha\">Vozinha<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"685\" src=\"https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014431\/3EWR0Y8-1024x685.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1465010\" srcset=\"https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014431\/3EWR0Y8-1024x685.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014431\/3EWR0Y8-300x201.jpg 300w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014431\/3EWR0Y8-768x514.jpg 768w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014431\/3EWR0Y8-1536x1027.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014431\/3EWR0Y8-2048x1369.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014431\/3EWR0Y8-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014431\/3EWR0Y8-299x200.jpg 299w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014431\/3EWR0Y8-90x60.jpg 90w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014431\/3EWR0Y8-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014431\/3EWR0Y8-111x74.jpg 111w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Nation: <\/strong>Cape Verde<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Position: <\/strong>Goalkeeper<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Cape Verde have been <em>the <\/em>story of this World Cup. And Vozinha has been <em>the <\/em>story for Cape Verde. The goalkeeper is the seventh-oldest player at this tournament, but has pulled off some heroics that belie his age. That includes seven saves to help the Blue Sharks to a 0-0 draw against European champions Spain in their first-ever World Cup match.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Vozinha has continued in that manner throughout the tournament, and kept another clean sheet &#8212; and made three more saves &#8212; as Cape Verde drew 0-0 against Saudi Arabia to clinch second place in Group H, setting up a knockout tie with Argentina as one of just 16 unbeaten teams in this 48-nation World Cup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>All that from a player who very nearly called time on his career just last year, but now has over 17 million followers on Instagram.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-pico-lopes\">Pico Lopes<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Nation: <\/strong>Cape Verde<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Position: <\/strong>Centre-back<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Pico Lopes&#8217; story is no less inspiring than Vozinha&#8217;s, though it&#8217;s perhaps more bizarre. The centre-back was born and raised in Ireland, and has won five league titles with current club Shamrock Rovers. He was capped for Ireland at youth level. But Lopes qualifies for Cape Verde through his father.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Lopes was approached on LinkedIn by then-Cape Verde manager Rui Aguas in 2018, but ignored it, suspecting the message &#8212; written in Portuguese &#8212; to be spam. Only nine months later, when Aguas followed up in English, did Lopes realise his mistake and accept the callup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Fast-forward to 2026, and Lopes has played every minute of this World Cup for Cape Verde so far, putting in some truly stunning defensive efforts. That includes 11 clearances, three blocks, two interceptions and 100% aerial duel success in that draw against Spain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-nathan-saliba\">Nathan Saliba<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Nation: <\/strong>Canada<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Position: <\/strong>Central midfielder<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Nathan Saliba is one of Canada&#8217;s biggest rising stars, and he&#8217;s truly announced himself at this World Cup. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Having only managed two international goals prior to the tournament, the Anderlecht midfielder found the net just eight minutes after coming on against Qatar as the Canucks ran out 6-0 winners. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>What earns him a place on this list is the fact that Saliba &#8212; who has a goal and two assists at the tournament so far &#8212; dedicated his goal to the player he replaced, Ismael Kone, who suffered a broken leg.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-sebastian-berhalter\">Sebastian Berhalter<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Nation: <\/strong>United States<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Position: <\/strong>Central midfielder<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>It&#8217;s not every day you see the son of a nation&#8217;s previous manager playing at the World Cup. But where Gregg Berhalter couldn&#8217;t call Sebastian up four years ago, the midfielder has grown since then and made the cut for Mauricio Pochettino.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Vancouver Whitecaps man has played 151 minutes so far across two substitute appearances and a start against Turkey, and registered a goal and assist in the latter in a stunning individual performance. Berhalter has silenced the native MLS-haters, while proving exactly why he&#8217;s being courted by European clubs right now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-brian-brobbey\">Brian Brobbey<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Nation: <\/strong>Netherlands<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Position: <\/strong>Striker<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Have the Netherlands finally solved their long-standing striker problem? The Oranje have arguably lacked a serious, natural focal point through the middle since Robin van Persie called it a day, and heading into this tournament, few expected Brian Brobbey to provide many answers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Yes, the physical target man enjoyed an excellent season in the Premier League for Sunderland. However, he had just one international goal to his name heading into this tournament, and only played five minutes of the opening match against Japan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But Brobbey has started both games since then and made sure he won&#8217;t be dropped again, netting a brace in the 5-1 thrashing of Sweden, before scoring another as the Dutch beat Tunisia 3-1 and sealed top of the group. All that, and he&#8217;s brought no shortage of his usual hold-up play.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-elijah-just\">Elijah Just<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Nation: <\/strong>New Zealand<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Position: <\/strong>Attacking midfielder<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Only a few very elite players have scored more goals than Elijah Just at this World Cup: Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe, Ousmane Dembele, Vinicius Jr and Erling Haaland. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That in itself is a stunning achievement for a Motherwell midfielder playing for New Zealand, the lowest-ranked nation at the tournament at 85th. But throw in the fact that he almost singlehandedly earned a point against Iran with a brace and managed to breach Belgium and the mighty Thibaut Courtois, and you can see why Just enjoyed this World Cup, even if he went home after the group stage. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-julian-quinones\">Julian Quinones<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014351\/3ENMKJH-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1465009\" srcset=\"https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014351\/3ENMKJH-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014351\/3ENMKJH-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014351\/3ENMKJH-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014351\/3ENMKJH-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014351\/3ENMKJH-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014351\/3ENMKJH-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014351\/3ENMKJH-90x60.jpg 90w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014351\/3ENMKJH-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014351\/3ENMKJH-111x74.jpg 111w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Nation: <\/strong>Mexico <\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Position: <\/strong>Forward<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Born in Colombia and capped for his native country at youth level, Julian Quinones rejected a senior call-up in 2023, instead opting to play for Mexico, where he&#8217;d lived since age 17.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Having scored just two goals at international level before this tournament, Quinones was an unlikely hero for El Tri. But a hero he&#8217;s been, with the 29-year-old finally carrying his elite club goalscoring record over to the national team, netting the first goal of the tournament against South Africa and Mexico&#8217;s second in a 3-0 win over the Czech Republic. He&#8217;s the only Mexican player to score more than once so far. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-ramin-rezaeian\">Ramin Rezaeian<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Nation: <\/strong>Iran<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Position: <\/strong>Right-back<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Thirty-six years old and appearing at his second World Cup, Ramin Rezaeian has certainly been around the block. The veteran right-back scored against Wales at Qatar 2022 and is already incredibly popular among supporters, but he&#8217;s taken things to a new level in North America.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Rezaeian grabbed a goal and an assist as Iran twice came from behind to draw with New Zealand in their opener, before grabbing the equaliser against Egypt in their final group game, which took them so close to their first-ever knockout appearance. Still, it was a glorious exit for Rezaeian, who must live vicariously through his younger teammates at future World Cups.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-kevin-pina\">Kevin Pina<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Nation: <\/strong>Cape Verde<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Position: <\/strong>Defensive midfielder<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>We had to return to Cape Verde just one more time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Kevin Pina has been the catalyst to almost everything the minnows have done well so far at this tournament. The Krasnodar midfielder scored Cape Verde&#8217;s first-ever World Cup goal en route to a 2-2 draw against two-time champions Uruguay, while he was superhuman against Saudi Arabia, making two tackles, four clearances, five recoveries and 53 passes at an 88% success rate, while winning six of 10 duels. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Cape Verde don&#8217;t get this far without Pina, who should be held in just as high regard as the likes of Vozinha and Lopes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-teboho-mokoena\">Teboho Mokoena<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Nation: <\/strong>South Africa<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Position: <\/strong>Defensive midfielder<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>There&#8217;s plenty of controversy surrounding Teboho Mokoena, who was an incredibly unpopular addition to their squad. That&#8217;s thanks to him failing to serve a one-match suspension during a qualifier against Lesotho, which resulted in their 2-0 win being flipped to a 3-0 walkover defeat. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Even with that defeat, the Bafana Bafana still finished a point above Nigeria and Benin at the top of their group, offering Mokoena a chance to redeem himself. The 29-year-old did just that, netting an 83rd-minute penalty to earn a point against the Czech Republic, which proved vital to South Africa reaching the knockout stages for the first time in their history. Mokoena was on fire in that match, creating a match-high five chances, while making two tackles, eight recoveries and two interceptions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-eloy-room\">Eloy Room<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Nation: <\/strong>Curacao<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Position: <\/strong>Goalkeeper<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Eloy Room isn&#8217;t exactly an unknown name at this World Cup. Despite being 37 years old and playing for Miami FC in USL, he&#8217;s represented the likes of PSV Eindhoven, Vitesse and Columbus Crew in the past, winning MLS Cup with the latter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Everybody knows his name now, though, after his incredible performance to help Curacao to their first-ever World Cup point with a 0-0 draw against Uruguay. The veteran goalkeeper made a ridiculous 15 saves to not only preserve a clean sheet, but also set the World Cup record in a 90-minute match.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-juan-caceres\">Juan Caceres<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Nation: <\/strong>Paraguay<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Position: <\/strong>Right-back<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Paraguay have overcome that 4-1 opening thrashing to the United States to become one of the most defensively resolute sides in this World Cup, conceding just once in three games since.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Even in that sort of defensive unit, Juan Caceres has stood out, and his performance in the 1-0 win over Turkey was the stuff of nightmares for forwards. The Dinamo Moscow man made a whopping nine tackles, alongside seven clearances, two recoveries and an interception, while also winning 17 of his 24 combined ground and aerial duels. Caceres utterly shut down the likes of Kenan Yildiz and Arda Guler as Paraguay held on to their victory despite Miguel Almiron&#8217;s red card just before half-time.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-deniz-undav\">Deniz Undav<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Nation: <\/strong>Germany<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Position: <\/strong>Striker<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Germany are out of the World Cup, losing a penalty shootout at the tournament fo the first time in their history. Deniz Undav was disappointing in that last-32 defeat to Paraguay, but Die Mannschaft wouldn&#8217;t have even been there without his group stage efforts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Undav was the ultimate super sub, coming off the bench in all three of their matches, but managing three goals and two assists in just 56 minutes in Germany&#8217;s first two matches against Curacao and the Ivory Coast. Some impact!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-yoane-wissa\">Yoane Wissa<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014347\/3EWMX8B-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1465008\" srcset=\"https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014347\/3EWMX8B-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014347\/3EWMX8B-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014347\/3EWMX8B-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014347\/3EWMX8B-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014347\/3EWMX8B-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014347\/3EWMX8B-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014347\/3EWMX8B-90x60.jpg 90w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014347\/3EWMX8B-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/media.squawka.com\/images\/2026\/06\/30014347\/3EWMX8B-111x74.jpg 111w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Nation: <\/strong>DR Congo<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Position: <\/strong>Striker<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Newcastle United fans will be scratching their heads at the form of Yoane Wissa at this World Cup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The striker has scored three goals so far, which is exactly how many he managed in 28 appearances during his first campaign on Tyneside. His first was an equaliser in a 1-1 draw against Portugal, while the other two helped deliver a 3-1 win over Uzbekistan, ensuring DR Congo set up a last 32 clash with England in just their second-ever World Cup and first since dropping the name Zaire. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Imagine the fury at St. James&#8217; Park if he manages to dump England out of the tournament with another goal. <\/p>\n\n\n<h3><strong>Read more:<\/strong><\/h3>\r\n<ul>\r\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none\">\r\n<ul>\r\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/bet\/football-tips\/world-cup-2026-betting-tips-predictions\/\"><strong>World Cup predictions &amp; tips<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\r\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/outright-markets\/world-cup-outright-odds\/\"><strong>World Cup outright odds <\/strong><\/a><\/li>\r\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/news\/world-cup-2026-fixtures-results\/\"><b>World Cup fixtures &amp; results<\/b><\/a><\/li>\r\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/world-cup-2026-betting-offers\/\"><b>World Cup free bets<\/b><\/a><\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The World Cup has long been the ultimate proving ground, not just for the elite names, but for lesser-known players looking for their big moment. This World Cup has been no different, with a host of understated stars and unfancied names from bigger nations pulling out all the stops on the very biggest stage, earning&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":56,"featured_media":1465011,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_focuskw":"2026 world cup","_yoast_wpseo_title":"%%title%%","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"The 2026 World Cup has produced its fair share of heroes already, some of which have emerged from obscurity.","footnotes":""},"tags":[],"squawka-category":[27631],"class_list":["post-1464959","cult-corner","type-cult-corner","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","squawka-category-world-cup"],"acf":{"external_featured_image_url":"","hide_featured_image_pattern":false},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.1 (Yoast SEO v27.1.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>14 cult heroes from the 2026 World Cup so far: From Vozinha to Germany&#039;s super sub<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The 2026 World Cup has produced its fair share of heroes already, some of which have emerged from obscurity.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/cult-corner\/2026-world-cup-cult-heroes\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"14 cult heroes from the 2026 World Cup so far: From Vozinha to Germany&#039;s super sub\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The 2026 World Cup has produced its fair share of heroes already, some of which have emerged from obscurity.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/cult-corner\/2026-world-cup-cult-heroes\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Squawka | EN\" \/>\n<meta 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