The draw for the European play-offs for the 2026 FIFA World Cup will take place later today.
Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland are among the teams awaiting their fate, as the teams compete for a place at next summer’s tournament.
When is the draw for the European play-offs for the 2026 World Cup?
The draw is scheduled for 12pm GMT, Thursday November 20, 2025.
Which teams are involved in the European play-offs?
There are 16 teams in the play-offs. Those involved are the 12 runners-up from the European qualifying groups and the four best-performing teams from the 2024 Nations League who did not qualify via that method.
European Qualifiers group runners-up: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Czechia, Denmark, Italy, Kosovo, Poland, Republic of Ireland, Slovakia, Türkiye, Ukraine, Wales
Nations League route qualifiers: Romania, Sweden, Northern Ireland, North Macedonia
What is the format of the European play-offs?
The teams will be split into four groups. Each play-off path will feature two single-leg semi-finals and a final. To determine the games, a draw will be made. In each path, semi-final one will feature a Pot 1 team vs Pot 4 team, and a Pot 2 team vs a Pot 3 team. The victors of each semi-final will meet to determine who progresses to the World Cup. A draw will also be made to determine which semi-final winners plays their final at home. For the semi-finals, the higher-seeded team will play at home.
What are the pots for the European play-offs draw ?
1 (seeded): Italy, Denmark, Türkiye, Ukraine.
2 (seeded): Poland, Wales, Czechia, Slovakia.
3 (unseeded): Republic of Ireland, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo.
4 (unseeded): Sweden, Romania, North Macedonia, Northern Ireland.
When are the European play-off dates?
The semi-finals take place on Thursday 26 March and the finals on Tuesday 31 March 2026.
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