FC Dallas wingback Herman Johansson helped the Sweden National Team qualify for the FIFA 2026 World Cup via the UEFA Play-off during the March international break. Johansson had earned a start (his first for his nation) and played 90 minutes in the 3-1 semfinal final victory over Ukraine on Thursday, March 26 which set up a winner-take-all matchup against Poland with a place in the World Cup on the line.
Sweden and Poland met on Tuesday, March 31 at Strawberry Arena in Solna, Sweden for the final of the UEFA Play-off Path B. Johansson, however, was not included in the 26-man matchday squad with head coach Graham Potter revealing the defender had not recovered from his 90-minute semifinal outing, which had immediately followed his transatlantic flight from Dallas. Nonetheless, Sweden triumphed 3-2 over Poland thanks to a last-minute goal from Arsenal FC striker Viktor Gyökeres to send the nation to its first World Cup since 2018.
If Johansson is chosen for Sweden's final World Cup squad, he'll join his countrymen in Group F and will face Tunisia (June 14 in Monterrey, Mexico), the Netherlands (June 20 in Houston), and Japan (June 25 in Dallas) during the Group Stage. Sweden will also call Toyota Stadium (known as FC Dallas Stadium for World Cup purposes) and Frisco home for the duration of group play as the nation's base camp.
Johansson joins Petar Musa (Croatia) and Louicious Don Deedson (Haiti) as FC Dallas' three likeliest World Cup representatives.
