Anna Nordqvist has finalised her 12-player Team Europe roster for the 2026 Solheim Cup, the captain revealed in a column written for Sky Sports in partnership with the Ladies European Tour, published Monday.
Nordqvist said completing the squad marked "a big milestone" in her captaincy, allowing her to focus on preparing the team for next month's contest against Team USA. She described the process of telling players they had missed out on a pick as one of the toughest parts of the job so far.
"It was a quite hard and emotional part of the journey having to make so many phone calls, letting players know they didn't make it and they weren't getting a pick," Nordqvist wrote. She added that past captains had encouraged her to push through the process, telling her the hardest part would be behind her once it was done.
Four captain's picks
Nordqvist chose Leona Maguire, Julia Lopez Ramirez, Nastasia Nadaud and Mimi Rhodes as her four captain's picks. Lopez Ramirez, Nadaud and Rhodes are all Solheim Cup rookies, while Maguire will make her fourth consecutive appearance for Team Europe.
"Surprising the three rookies... by letting them know they were among my four picks was very exciting!" Nordqvist wrote. Lopez Ramirez, Nadaud and Rhodes joined her for interviews and a live show at the Sky Sports News studio the day after the AIG Women's Open, when the full team was announced.
Full Team Europe lineup
Charley Hull and Esther Henseleit qualified automatically through the LET Solheim Cup Points List, while Lottie Woad, Maja Stark, Linn Grant, Celine Boutier, Carlota Ciganda and Nanna Koerstz Madsen earned their places via the Rolex Women's World Golf Rankings. Maguire, Lopez Ramirez, Nadaud and Rhodes complete the 12 as captain's picks.
"I feel very good about the team we have selected and who has qualified," Nordqvist wrote. "We have a great mixture of experience and personality, plus four rookies who bring a sense of fresh air and aggressive playing styles."
Pairings puzzle ahead
Nordqvist said she is now turning her attention to working out her pairings for the matches against Team USA. "I'm excited to continue to work on the pairing 'puzzle' over the coming weeks and figure out the best strategy for us to take on Team USA," she wrote, adding that the whole squad is "supportive and looking forward to what is ahead next month."
She said preparations are continuing behind the scenes with her vice-captains, backroom team, helpers and caddie captains in the weeks before the team travels to the Netherlands.
Solheim Cup format and coverage
The 2026 Solheim Cup runs from September 11-13 at Bernardus Golf, marking the first time the event has been held in the Netherlands. Defending champions Team USA, captained by Angela Stanford, are due to announce their own team later in August.
Team USA need 14 points to retain the trophy after their 15.5-12.5 victory over Europe in 2024. Team Europe would need 14.5 points to secure their first outright Solheim Cup win since 2021.
Sky Sports Golf will carry live coverage of all three days, starting at 6am on Friday September 11, 6am on September 12 and 10am on September 13.
