The draw for the 2026 FIFA World Cup European play-offs has taken place in Zurich, mapping out a dramatic path for 16 nations to fight for the final four spots to reach the tournament in North America. The format is built around four “paths,” each consisting of two one-leg semi-finals and a final, only the winner of each path qualifies for the World Cup.
In Path A, Italy, one of the seeded teams, will face Northern Ireland, while Wales take on Bosnia and Herzegovina. The winner of Wales-Bosnia would then have the home advantage in the path final against the winner of Italy vs Northern Ireland.
Path B sees Ukraine drawn against Sweden and Poland up against Albania. In Path C, Turkey will host Romania, while Slovakia meet Kosovo. Finally, Path D features Denmark against North Macedonia and Czechia hosting the Republic of Ireland.
These matches are scheduled to take place in late March 2026: the semi-finals on 26 March and the finals on 31 March. Because each tie is a single-leg knockout, there is huge pressure: home advantage, tactical risk, and very little room for error.
The draw was conducted using a seeding system: the 16 teams were divided into four pots based on FIFA rankings and their performance in the UEFA Nations League. The higher-seeded teams (from Pots 1 and 2) will host their semi-final matches, and later a draw decided who hosts each path final.
For many of these nations, the play-offs represent a high-stakes, final opportunity to reach the World Cup. Teams like Italy who missed out on automatic qualification will want to seize this chance, while underdogs such as Kosovo or Northern Ireland will hope to pull off upsets.
English