By:
Graeme Hanna
The World Cup playoff draw has been made, with the Republic of Ireland set to play the Czech Republic, Northern Ireland facing Italy, and Wales playing Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Those semi-final ties will be followed by a playoff final decider, when 16 UEFA competitors become eight, with four winning finalists booking their ticket to the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
RoI have the incentive of a home final against Denmark or North Macedonia, while the hard task for NI is compounded with an away final in Wales or Bosnia, if they can claim the scalp of Italy.
The draw was made on Thursday at FIFA headquarters in Zurich, as the nations now seek to join the other 42 who have already qualified for the World Cup.
Six places remain, with four allocated to UEFA countries, while the other two will be taken by the winners of the inter-confederation playoff tournament.
It will be contested by DR Congo, Iraq, Jamaica, Bolivia, Suriname, and New Caledonia.
The first two nations in that list were seeded and will go straight to a playoff final, while the other four nations will contest a one-leg semi-final.
🚨 UEFA PLAY-OFFS TIES ARE SET!
🏴 Wales vs 🇧🇦 Bosnia
VS
🇮🇹 Italy vs 🍀 N. Ireland🇺🇦 Ukraine vs 🇸🇪 Sweden
VS
🇵🇱 Poland vs 🇦🇱 Albania🇸🇰 Slovakia vs 🇽🇰 Kosovo
VS
🇹🇷 Türkiye vs 🇷🇴 Romania🇨🇿 Czechia vs 🇮🇪 Ireland
VS
🇩🇰 Denmark vs 🇲🇰 N. Macedonia💥 Matches played in March… pic.twitter.com/CVn2gXyFYQ
— Football Rankings (@FootRankings) November 20, 2025
World Cup Playoff path for Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland, and Wales
The Republic of Ireland will likely be the happiest of the ‘home nations’ countries involved in the World Cup playoff draw.
While their semi-final tie away to the Czech Republic will be a tough encounter, they will be bullish about their chances, especially after the recent results against Portugal and Hungary, with the latter showing what can be done on the road.
The potential of a playoff final at the Aviva Stadium is a massive incentive, regardless of the opponent.
Northern Ireland have it all to do, that is for sure.
They are underdogs and wouldn’t have it any other way, but going away to Italy, then facing a final in Wales or Bosnia, is daunting.
Michael O’Neill will relish the opportunity to set his team up to have a crack at Gennaro Gattuso’s Italy, which is a team far below the might of the Azzuri in years gone by.
They still possess several talented Serie A operators who will be more than confident of sweeping aside anything Northern Ireland can offer.
The World Cup Playoff semi-final ties will be played on Thursday 26 March, followed by the finals on Tuesday 31 March.
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