Dom Hyam believes Wrexham's extraordinary rise through English football has been central to his return to the Scotland fold ahead of the FIFA World Cup 2026.

The centre-back made just one senior international appearance before joining Wrexham from Blackburn Rovers last summer. Now, with the club having finished seventh in the Championship — their first season in the second tier in 43 years — Hyam credits the Red Dragons' ambition for raising his international profile.

"It just shows how well the club have done in such a short period of time," Hyam told BBC Sport Wales. "Myself and Libby [New Zealand international Liberato Cacace] are going to the World Cup. I think the last player to represent Wrexham at a World Cup was Dennis Lawrence — he actually coached me at Coventry a few years ago, so it's funny how these things work out."

Patience rewarded on the international stage

Hyam, 30, won his debut cap in 2023 but endured a wait of nearly three years before his next call-up under Steve Clarke. That second appearance came against Ivory Coast at Everton's Hill Dickinson Stadium in March, and his third arrived in a 4-1 friendly win over Curaçao on Saturday.

"I've said all along, I can only control what I do on the pitch at my club," said the Wrexham captain. "I had a pretty solid season and it helps that the club have done well. It was a little frustrating having to wait a few years between caps, but that's just football — hopefully I can get a few more."

Scotland's group stage challenge

Scotland return to the World Cup for the first time since France 1998, and they face a formidable group. The Scots open against Haiti on 13 June at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, before meeting Morocco six days later at the same venue. They then close out the group stage against five-time champions Brazil at Miami's Hard Rock Stadium on 24 June.

Notably, Scotland also faced Brazil and Morocco at the 1998 tournament — a coincidence Hyam finds compelling. "There's a bit of romance in there with the history of the Brazil game," he said. "It'll be an historic occasion and we're all buzzing for it, but we've got equally important games before that."

Hyam, who was too young to remember the 1998 campaign, says he has studied archive footage of Scotland's historic World Cup moments. His ambition, shared by the squad, is to become the first Scotland generation to advance beyond the group stage. "It's there for everyone to see that qualifying out of the group would be a great accomplishment," he added.

Going one better with Wrexham

Back at club level, Wrexham narrowly missed out on the Championship play-offs on the final day of the regular season — a result that stung after three consecutive promotions had carried the club from the National League to the second tier.

"We can't let finishing seventh in the Championship be deemed as a failure," Hyam said. "We're all disappointed, but manager Phil Parkinson was very realistic and proud of the efforts too." With additional play-off places set to be made available next season, Hyam insists the club's hunger remains undiminished. "We're all very hungry to go again," he said.

Season five of the Welcome to Wrexham documentary series is currently rolling out, and Hyam — who features prominently — believes the World Cup's American setting will give the show extra resonance. "With the World Cup being in America, I'm sure it'll be a great occasion for everyone," he said.