Ireland draw Czech Republic in World Cup play-off semi-final

November 20, 2025

Ireland have been drawn against Czech Republic in the World Cup play-off semi-final.

The boys in green will travel to Prague for the single-elimination tie on Thursday, 26 March next year.

If Ireland progress, a home game awaits in the final against the winner of Denmark vs North Macedonia.

That could be an opportunity for some sweet revenge over eight years after the Danes ended Ireland’s hopes of qualifying for the 2018 World Cup with a 5-1 thumping at the Aviva Stadium.

Against all odds, when Ireland’s campaign looked dead and buried Heimir Hallgrimsson’s side pulled it out of the fire with consecutive wins over Portugal and Hungary to secure second place in Group F.

Troy Parrott became a national hero with a double in Dublin against the world’s fifth-ranked country before going one better with an incredible hat-trick in Budapest to break Hungarian hearts with the last kick of the game.

Ireland have not qualified for a World Cup since 2002 and while the path remains a stiff task, the Emerald Isle is enjoying a serious momentum rush.

Supporters may get ready for the mind-blowing cost of watching Ireland at the World Cup.

Czech Republic await Ireland in play-off semi-final

Czech Republic was without question one of the more favourable opponents for Ireland which includes Poland, Wales and Slovakia.

They finished runners-up to Croatia in Group L, winning five, drawing one and losing two of those qualifiers.

Some weaknesses were evident, losing to the Faroe Islands on the road and being handed a 5-1 defeat to Croatia.

One thing in Czechia’s favour is most certainly a strong home record in 2025, undefeated in six outings with four wins and a goal difference of +10.

Those wins included Gibraltar and Montenegro though so whether you can use that as a solid formline, it’s hard to say.

Bayer Leverkusen striker Patrik Schick is the danger man up top and he’s enjoyed a fine start to the Bundesliga season with five goals from seven starts.

He scored four times across the qualifying campaign and should prove a difficult man to contain for Ireland’s backline of Jake O’Brien, Nathan Collins and Dara O’Shea.

Major tournament experience under their belt is another plus, going out in the group stage of Euro 2024 and reaching the quarter-final of Euro 2021.

Czechia have not qualified for a World Cup since 2006. Veterans such as Tomas Soucek and Vladimir Coufal will be vital to their hopes of making it to North America next year.

Denmark likely opponents in mouthwatering Aviva final

Make no mistake, if Ireland get past Czech Republic and Denmark do the same against North Macedonia it will set-up an all-timer in Dublin on Tuesday, March 31.

After taking a quick 1-0 lead eight years ago through Shane Duffy, Ireland’s response was nothing short of catastrophic as Christian Eriksen nailed a hat-trick at the Aviva alongside goals from Andreas Christensen and Nicklas Bendtner.

Time heals everything and Irish football is no longer scarred from the trauma of that night under Martin O’Neill. However it most certainly adds an exciting dynamic to the game and one that Ireland will be desperate to win.

Securing a place at the World Cup in front of your home support is the stuff of dreams and Ireland should be a tough nut to crack in that encounter.