Austria National Team: Football Squad and the 2026 World Cup

The Austria national team is the men's football side of the Austrian Football Association (ÖFB), founded on 18 March 1904. Austria finished third at the 1954 World Cup, reached the last 16 at Euro 2020 and Euro 2024, and in 2026 returned to the World Cup after 28 years away. South African readers searching for the Austria soccer team are in the right place, because the squad, the history and the kick off times for every African clock sit together below.

Austria are a little like the quiet student in a Lagos classroom who goes whole terms without raising a hand and then tops the exam. It is a small country, but every few decades it produces a side that makes the rest of Europe stop and look. So, this guide gives you the current squad first, the 2026 World Cup next, then the history that older fans still argue about, the records, and the African threads that run through it all, from Egypt in 1936 to Ghana in Vienna and Algeria in Kansas City. If you only know Austria through David Alaba, you will leave knowing why the shirt matters.

Who Runs the Austria National Team?

The side is selected and run by the ÖFB, which was founded on 18 March 1904.

In the 1930s the side was called the Wunderteam, the "wonder team", because it played some of the finest football on the continent, and older Austrian supporters still measure every new generation against it.

Who Is in the Austria Squad, and Who Leads It?

The Austria squad changes with every international window, so the live squad module lists the current players by position, with their clubs and caps, and it updates itself after each call up. David Alaba was described as Austria captain in the 2026 squad guide. Read it from the back: the goalkeepers first, then the defenders, midfielders and forwards follow, with clubs and caps supplied by the module. If you are checking the Austria squad before a match, look at the club column too, because it tells you which of these players you have already watched on a weekend.

Austria reached the round of 16 at Euro 2020, played in 2021, and at Euro 2024. For how Austria compares with the other sides in our directory, browse our national teams and set the Super Eagles, Black Stars or Bafana Bafana beside them.

How Did Austria Do in Group J at the 2026 World Cup?

Austria were drawn in Group J of the 2026 World Cup with Argentina, Algeria and Jordan, and it was their first World Cup since 1998, a gap of 28 years. For a country that once finished third in the world, that absence was long, and the qualification itself was treated in Vienna as a homecoming. The group was a fair mix of styles, with the world champions of 2022 in Argentina, an Algeria side carrying North African hopes, and a Jordan team on its own first World Cup journey. As such, every African fan following Group J had a reason to watch Austria closely.

The match that defines this Austria team for African readers is the 3-3 draw with Algeria in Kansas City on 27 June 2026. Six goals, two sides that needed something, and a result that sent both Austria and Algeria through to the round of 32, so nobody in Vienna or Algiers went to bed unhappy. For Nigerian fans following Alaba, the match offered a chance to watch him against an African side at the 2026 World Cup. In my opinion, it was the most African evening Austria have ever had on a football pitch.

Austria Fixtures: What Time Is Kick Off Where You Live?

The fixtures and results modules show every Austria match with the competition, the venue and the kick off time already converted into WAT, EAT, SAST and GMT. When reading them, check the competition label first, because a friendly, a Nations League match and a qualifier carry very different weight. For home matches in Vienna, the clock is simple to work out. In the Austrian winter, Vienna runs on the same time as Lagos (WAT), Accra (GMT) is one hour behind, Johannesburg (SAST) one hour ahead, and Nairobi and Kampala (EAT) two hours ahead. In the Austrian summer, Vienna moves forward an hour and sits level with Johannesburg.

Austria's European matches usually fall in the African afternoon or evening, which makes them easy to watch after work in Lagos, Accra or Nairobi. Where to watch is listed as data for each country, because the rights to UEFA matches and the World Cup sit with different pay television and streaming services in Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa, Ghana and Uganda. Most fans watch in bars, viewing centres and fan zones, then carry the debate onto WhatsApp, X and Facebook long after the final whistle. So, if a big qualifier is coming, check the module the day before, because broadcast details can be confirmed late.

What Was the Wunderteam, and What Happened in 1954 and Gijón 1982?

The Wunderteam was the Austria side of the early 1930s, coached by Hugo Meisl and led by the forward Matthias Sindelar, and it was one of the dominant teams in Europe. On 16 May 1931 it became the first continental European team to beat Scotland, and it finished fourth at the 1934 World Cup, Austria's first. Two years later Austria won silver at the 1936 Berlin Olympics, losing the final 2-1 to Italy after extra time. Then history intervened. After the Anschluss in 1938 the ÖFB was abolished and Austria withdrew from that year's World Cup, and the national team was only re-established in 1945.

Austria finished third at the 1954 World Cup, a campaign that included a 7-5 win over Switzerland. The 1982 tournament is remembered differently. Austria and West Germany met in Gijón in the last first round group game, knowing a narrow West German win would send both through, and that is how it finished, so Algeria, who had beaten West Germany earlier in the group, went out on goal difference. Austria then went out in the second group stage. Since that match, final group games at a World Cup kick off at the same time, which is why Austria and Algeria played their 2026 decider alongside the other Group J match. The 2026 World Cup was Austria's eighth appearance.

How Have Austria Done at Recent European Championships?

Austria reached the round of 16 at Euro 2020 and Euro 2024. Their first Euro came in 2008, when they were joint hosts with Switzerland and went out in the group stage. At Euro 2020, played in 2021, they reached the knockout rounds for the first time and took Italy to extra time before losing 2-1 in the round of 16. At Euro 2024, Austria won Group D ahead of France and the Netherlands, then lost 2-1 to Turkey in the round of 16.

Who Holds the Austria Records?

The records module dates each achievement and updates the standing records, including the biggest win, biggest defeat, highest FIFA ranking, tournament finishes, highest scoring World Cup match, most capped player and all time top scorer. Austria beat San Marino 10-0 on 9 October 2025 and lost 1-11 to England on 8 June 1908. They held 10th place in the FIFA ranking from March to June 2016, and they finished third at the 1954 World Cup. When you read the records module, look at the dates beside each name, because a record set in the 1930s and one set in the 2020s tell you very different stories about Austrian football.

Where Do Austria's Players Play, and Which Stars Do African Fans Know?

The squad module shows each selected player's club and league. The club column in the squad module is the quickest guide for African fans connecting international players with the club football they watch.

For Nigerian, Ghanaian, Kenyan, Ugandan and South African readers following David Alaba or Marko Arnautović, the squad module supplies selection details, clubs and caps.

How Have Austria Fared Against African Teams?

Austria's meetings with African sides stretch back almost a century, and they have tended to come at memorable moments. The first documented one was a 3-1 win over Egypt at the 1936 Berlin Olympics, on the way to the silver medal. Algeria were part of the 1982 World Cup group that ended with the Gijón match, and they met again in Kansas City in 2026, when the 3-3 draw sent both sides through from Group J.

For Ghanaian readers, the most direct link is the friendly in Vienna on 27 March 2026, which Austria won 5-1. Kenyan, Ugandan and South African fans have fewer direct meetings to point to, so for Harambee Stars, Uganda Cranes and Bafana Bafana supporters, the connection runs through the players they watch in the Bundesliga and the Premier League. If you want an African reason to watch Austria, start with the Algeria match, then work backwards to Egypt in 1936.

Where Do Austria Play at Home, and Is It the Austria National Team or the Austria Football Team?

The fixtures module lists the venue for each Austria home match. As for the name, it is all the same side: Nigerian, Ghanaian and South African readers mostly search for the Austria national team, Kenyan and Ugandan readers often type the Austria football team, and Austrians also refer to the ÖFB side. So, whichever phrase brought you here, open the fixtures module, set it to your own clock in WAT, EAT, SAST or GMT, and check the squad list before the next Austria match kicks off.