World Cup European Play-Offs

moses

Can't We Just Be Nice?
Staff
Joined
Jul 28, 2006
Messages
59,178
Location
Out on a limb
FIFA

FIFA headquarters to host Play-Off Tournament and European Play-Off draws​



The draw for the FIFA World Cup 2026™ Play-Off Tournament and the European Play-Off draw will take place on Thursday, 20 November 2025.
LUSAIL CITY, QATAR - DECEMBER 18: A view of the World Cup Trophy before the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Final match between Argentina and France at Lusail Stadium on December 18, 2022 in Lusail City, Qatar. (Photo by Michael Regan - FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)

  • FIFA World Cup 2026™ Play-Off Tournament and European Play-Off draws to be held at the Home of FIFA in Zurich, Switzerland, on Thursday, 20 November 2025
  • Final six nations to play at next year’s FIFA World Cup™ to be decided in March 2026
  • Draws to be streamed live on FIFA.com, FIFA+ and via media partners
The final pathways to the game-changing FIFA World Cup 2026™ will be mapped out when the draw for the FIFA World Cup 2026™ Play-Off Tournament and the European Play-Off draw take place at the Home of FIFA in Zurich, Switzerland, on Thursday, 20 November 2025.The draws will define the routes the 22 competing nations – six via the Play-Off Tournament and 16 through European Play-Off matches – will need to successfully navigate to seal a spot at the first-ever 48-team FIFA World Cup™, which will be staged in Canada, Mexico and the United States from Thursday, 11 June to Sunday, 19 July 2026.The draws will be staged back-to-back, with the draw for the FIFA World Cup 2026 Play-Off Tournament commencing at 13:00 CET, followed by the European Play-Off equivalent.The draws will take place just two days after the completion of the November 2025 international match window, which promises to be another action-packed period as the list of qualified nations for the 23rd edition of the FIFA World Cup continues to take shape.

Spectacular scenes from the World Cup’s Host Cities
Enjoy the very best of what the 16 Host Cities throughout Canada, Mexico and the United States have to offer ahead of FIFA World Cup 26™ with our immersive preview video.

Twenty-eight teams have already booked their places at next year’s historic tournament, with a further 14 nations – three from Concacaf and 11 from UEFA – set to punch their tickets to the finals via confederation qualifying this month.The November international window will also define which teams from the AFC, CAF and Concacaf will join Bolivia (CONMEBOL) and New Caledonia (the OFC) at the six-nation FIFA Play-Off Tournament, as well as the 16 countries that will compete in the European Play-Offs, during the international match window from 23 to 31 March 2026.The FIFA Play-Off Tournament will feature two finals where the winners of the two semi-finals between the unseeded teams will face the two seeded teams, with the eventual winners securing two spots at the FIFA World Cup 2026.The European Play-Offs will be made up of 12 group runners-up and the four best-ranked UEFA Nations League section winners. The 16 teams who enter will be drawn into four play-off paths, with four teams in each. Play-off matches will be played in single-leg semi-finals followed by single-leg finals to decide Europe’s final four FIFA World Cup 2026 participants.
FIFA-World-Cup-2026-Match-Schedule-Announcement

To ensure both draws can be conducted in accordance with the relevant draw procedures, the next edition of the FIFA/Coca-Cola Men’s World Ranking will be published on Wednesday, 19 November 2025.Fans around the world will be able to follow the draws live on FIFA.com, FIFA+ and via media partners. Further details, including additional broadcast information, will be published on FIFA.com in due course.
 
Italy will get a soft path I reckon.

It was forgotten last time if they'd beaten North Macedonia they would've faced Portugal away in the final qualifier to make 2022.

And in 2018 Sweden was probably the hardest team they could've got as a seed.

Can't help feeling with ROI's late run they'll go in Wales quarter....Or Scotland if they end up which would be lively.
 
The whole thing is baffling. Sweden getting a playoff spot basically as a reward for being relegated to the third tier of the Nations League in 2023 is something else.
 
It's bollocks that nations league shite counts towards these qualification rounds.

There was a stage in the last qualifications where I think it was better for Ireland to lose than win in terms of getting a play off.


Italy will get a guaranteed path, can't have them missing out twice in a row.
 
V.O. said:
The whole thing is baffling. Sweden getting a playoff spot basically as a reward for being relegated to the third tier of the Nations League in 2023 is something else.
Click to expand...

Didn't they win the group?

It was similar for last Euros. Georgia finished 4th in their qualifying group but won in the play offs due to winning their nations league group the previous year.
 
FootballHQ said:
Didn't they win the group?

It was similar for last Euros. Georgia finished 4th in their qualifying group but won in the play offs due to winning their nations league group the previous year.
Click to expand...
Yeah, they won their plum Nations League group that they were only in because they got relegated from the second tier the time before.
 
V.O. said:
Yeah, they won their plum Nations League group that they were only in because they got relegated from the second tier the time before.
Click to expand...

Ah yeah I get you. I guess in any system there are ways to manipulate things and you can do that but ultimately Sweden is in lowest pot so won't be getting a home draw until perhaps the final and will get a very hard route to make it.

They won't be able to draw Moldova at home in this.
 
Shane88 said:
Is it pot 1 team faces a pot 4 team and a pot 2 team faces a pot 3 team or how does it work?
Click to expand...

According to RTE.

The 12 group runners-up will be allocated to Pots 1 to 3, with seeding to determine the order.

Pot 1 and 2 will be home teams as seeds.

Pot 3 are unseeded and away from home along with Pot 4, which are the Nations League teams. So if Ireland are unseeded, we will not be playing a Nations League-qualified side.


The Boys in Green would need to be in the top 7 of the 12 runners-up. We won't know for sure until Wednesday when the seedings are confirmed as our wins over Portugal and Hungary will move us up. FIFA have promised to issue new rankings on Wednesday
 
Oranges038 said:
It's bollocks that nations league shite counts towards these qualification rounds.

There was a stage in the last qualifications where I think it was better for Ireland to lose than win in terms of getting a play off.


Italy will get a guaranteed path, can't have them missing out twice in a row.
Click to expand...
So that's how Norn Ireland and Sweden are in the discussion?
 
Oranges038 said:
It's bollocks that nations league shite counts towards these qualification rounds.

There was a stage in the last qualifications where I think it was better for Ireland to lose than win in terms of getting a play off.


Italy will get a guaranteed path, can't have them missing out twice in a row.
Click to expand...

If Italy miss out again it'll be three times in a row.
 
I just hope we do enough to get past Denmark on Tuesday night at Hampden to qualify automatically therefore having to avoid this.
 
Oranges038 said:
It's bollocks that nations league shite counts towards these qualification rounds.

There was a stage in the last qualifications where I think it was better for Ireland to lose than win in terms of getting a play off.


Italy will get a guaranteed path, can't have them missing out twice in a row.
Click to expand...

Three times! They already missed Russia and Qatar.
 
This shit's way too confusing for me.

I like the way CONMEBOL does it. Everyone plays each other twice, once at home and once away, then that's the end of it (well, other than the one team that goes to the playoffs). Obviously you can't easily replicate that system with the other confederations though - too many member nations.
 
Oranges038 said:
There really is something seriously wrong with Italian football, it's been in a sorry state for a long time.
Click to expand...

The squad on paper just seems so lacklustre compared to the names when I was growing up in the 90s and 00s. About half the squad I've never really heard of, and then some of the players that I recognise the names I still have no idea what they look like or the type of player they are apart from their basic position.

Looking back at the 2002/2006 squads they're both full of legendary names and only 1 or 2 players that I can't picture. Real far cry from that today.

Think the decline of Serie A has a large part to play in it. In general the league isn't as competitive as it was previously, despite there seemingly being a greater percentage of non-native players among the 'top' players in the league (it speaks for itself when McTominay and Lukaku are two of the best players).
 
Yea yeah for those talking about Italy being luckluster -

Donnarumma, Bastoni, Calafiori, Dimarco, Tonali, Barella, Ricci, Orsolini, Kean, Pio Esposito, Retegui, Chiesa isn't bad on paper - it's obviously a ways off the past, but it should be more than good enough to qualify for the fecking WC

The problem is the mentality. These players have no confidence anymore when they play for Italy, they get so scared, and have no personality

And then the managers - i mean ffs, Di Lorenzo should have never worn the shirt again after the night Nico Williams took his dignity, yet here we still are, even with a different guy in charge

Anyways, we're a tennis country now and at least Sinner didn't let us down :lol:
 
Patchbeard said:
The squad on paper just seems so lacklustre compared to the names when I was growing up in the 90s and 00s. About half the squad I've never really heard of, and then some of the players that I recognise the names I still have no idea what they look like or the type of player they are apart from their basic position.

Looking back at the 2002/2006 squads they're both full of legendary names and only 1 or 2 players that I can't picture. Real far cry from that today.

Think the decline of Serie A has a large part to play in it. In general the league isn't as competitive as it was previously, despite there seemingly being a greater percentage of non-native players among the 'top' players in the league (it speaks for itself when McTominay and Lukaku are two of the best players).
Click to expand...

Whatever about Serie A. Structurally there has to be something wrong from the bottom up, they just aren't producing any top class players across the board. Plus they keep hiring shit coaches.

It's sad to see it, they really need to sort their shit out. There's nearly a generation of kids now who've never seen Italy at a world cup.
 
Oranges038 said:
There really is something seriously wrong with Italian football, it's been in a sorry state for a long time.
Click to expand...
Most Italian clubs play in old stadiums they can't upgrade, and can't profit from ticket sales, concessions, and corporate hospitality the way PL clubs do.

You could probably name more good Italian tennis players than footballers these days....
 
Although Italian football has clearly got problems. The teams haven't done too badly in Europe in the last 5 years. Roma, Fiorentina and Inter have made two European finals. Roma and Atalanta have won a European trophy.

This year the field is weaker though.
 

Confirmed World Cup 2026 playoffs​

Path A

SF1: Italy v Northern Ireland
SF2: Wales v Bosnia-Herzegovina

Path B

SF3: Ukraine v Sweden
SF4: Poland v Albania
Path C

SF5: Turkey v Romania
SF6: Slovakia v Kosovo

Path D

SF7: Denmark v North Macedonia
SF8: Czech Republic v Republic of Ireland

Draw for the finals:

Winner of SF2 (Wales Bosnia-Herzegovina) at home v winner of SF1 (Italy v Northern Ireland).

Winner of SF3 (Ukraine and Sweden) at home v winner of SF4 (Poland v Albania).

Winner of SF6 (Slovakia v Kosovo v winner of SF5 (Turkey v Romania)

Winner of SF8 (Czech Republic v Republic of Ireland) at home v winner of SF7 (Denmark v North Macedonia).
 
SilentWitness said:

Confirmed World Cup 2026 playoffs​

Path A

SF1: Italy v Northern Ireland
SF2: Wales v Bosnia-Herzegovina

Path B

SF3: Ukraine v Sweden
SF4: Poland v Albania
Path C

SF5: Turkey v Romania
SF6: Slovakia v Kosovo

Path D

SF7: Denmark v North Macedonia
SF8: Czech Republic v Republic of Ireland

Draw for the finals:

Winner of SF2 (Wales Bosnia-Herzegovina) at home v winner of SF1 (Italy v Northern Ireland).

Winner of SF3 (Ukraine and Sweden) at home v winner of SF4 (Poland v Albania).

Winner of SF6 (Slovakia v Kosovo v winner of SF5 (Turkey v Romania)

Winner of SF8 (Czech Republic v Republic of Ireland) at home v winner of SF7 (Denmark v North Macedonia).
Click to expand...
do one from each path then go through to the World Cup?
Also is the final one leg?
 
Don't think any of the home nations make it through that
 
Damn so we can't have all of Scotland, Wales, England, Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland at the world cup.
 
To go through:
Italy
Ukraine
Turkey
Ireland

Reckon DR Congo & Bolivia from the intercontinental playoffs
 
Dr. StrangeHate said:
Didn't Sweden finish last in their group, how are they in qualifying playoffs?
Click to expand...
We won our Nation league group... Now we got kind of lucky with the draw. Playing Ukraine away is the easiest from Pot 1... I consider our Pot 2 draw (potential final) Poland to be the toughest, but we would have to play that game at home, which is great.
 
Sorry Swedes but you guys have no right to be in the World Cup. It's a joke that Sweden finishes a qualifying group with only 2 points but still have a playoff opportunity. It's making a mockery out of the World Cup qualifying just because they won their UEFA Nations League group which let's be honest, is just a glorified friendly.
 
Dr. StrangeHate said:
Damn so we can't have all of Scotland, Wales, England, Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland at the world cup.
Click to expand...
Why not? If Northern Ireland, Ireland and Wales avoid each other in the playoff, they can, no?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.