Christoph Baumgartner Injury Update

Christoph Baumgartner Injury Update: Austrian Midfielder To Miss World Cup

Aishik Das

Published - Jun 02, 2026, 03:10 PM

3 min

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Christoph Baumgartner Injury Update: Austrian Midfielder To Miss World Cup

Summary

RB Leipzig's Christoph Baumgartner is ruled out of the World Cup due to a thigh injury.
He suffered the injury in the pre-game warm-up before the international friendly against Tunisia.
Austria are still looking for a like-for-like replacement to fill the position ahead of the tournament.

Simultaneous good and bad news coming from the Austrian camp reveals that David Alaba has been cleared to travel with the squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, but the Cristoph Baumgartner injury has raised concerns at the same time.

The Austrian fans who were concerned about Is Cristoph Baumgartner injured, yes, there is indeed bad news for you. The RB Leipzig midfielder suffered a thigh injury in the pre-match warm-up against Tunisia, which prevented him from taking part in the international friendly.

Further MRI scans showcased the extent of the injury, which ultimately forced the association to not take him to the USA. Baumgartner, who had a fine season in the Bundesliga with 17 goals and 9 assists, is absolutely gutted by the way things have panned out.

The Austrian football association took to their social media account (X) to confirm the news on Tuesday. Ralf Ragnick, the current manager of the Austrian national football team, said in a press conference that the news came in a very important phase of their preparations, but will continue to show support to the player as he begins his recovery process.

This is of course very bitter news for Christoph ‌and for us as a team. He ⁠is an important player and a central personality within our ‌team. Now our full support is for his recovery.

Who Will Replace Christoph Baumgartner?

After the Cristoph Baumgartner injury, the Austrian team has been scrambling around for a replacement with just a few days remaining for the commencement of the global gathering event. As per reports, an immediate replacement hasn't been figured out as of now.

Austria do have a lot of options in the midfield, but Baumgartner was undoubtedly one of their best attacking outlets. Ragnick can make use of Paul Wanner, Carney Chukwuemeka, or Sasa Kalajdzic in the attacking midfield role in the Leipzig midfielder's absence.

He can also make a more dynamic move by using Marcel Sabitzer in that role, who's quite well-equipped and experienced to produce the required output as an attacking midfielder.

Overall, the Cristoph Baumgartner injury will be a miss for Austria; it remains to be seen how they cope in the upcoming tournament without him.