Kaoru Mitoma is not playing for Japan because of a hamstring injury he picked up while playing for Brighton against Wolves. Reports say Japan’s medical staff and coach Hajime Moriyasu judged that he would not recover in time, so he was left out of the squad for the tournament.

What happened

  • Mitoma suffered the injury in early May 2026 during a Premier League match for Brighton.
  • After medical evaluation, Japan decided he could not return to full fitness quickly enough to contribute during the tournament.
  • That is why he was omitted rather than simply rested.

Why fans noticed it

He was one of Japan’s biggest attacking threats, so his absence stood out immediately when the squad was announced. Coverage around the time of the roster reveal focused on whether he might recover, but the final decision was to keep him out.

In plain terms

This is an injury issue, not a tactical snub or discipline problem. The short version is: hamstring injury, too little recovery time, so he was ruled out.

Quick update

Recent reports also describe the injury as serious enough that he missed the World Cup squad entirely, with estimated recovery taking weeks rather than days.