European playoff: Italy at risk of facing Sweden, Macedonia or Northern Ireland

Italy will face the 2026 Eliminatórias Europeias Copa playoff for the third time in a row. The four-time world champion team finished in second place in Grupo I and was left out of direct classification after a 4-1 defeat to Noruega in the last round. The draw for the clashes takes place this Thursday (20) at Nyon, at Suíça.

Uefa confirmed the 16 countries competing for the continent’s four remaining spots. Itália is in Pote 1 and will play the semi-final at home on March 26, 2026. Os possible opponents come from Pote 4 and include three teams that have already eliminated the Italians in previous cycles.

The format foresees four independent paths with semi-finals and finals in a single game. Os hosts of the semifinals are always the teams from Potes 1 and 2.

These teams are still in the hunt for a #FIFAWorldCup spot 👀#WeAre26 pic.twitter.com/0R0BAB3Zxq

— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) November 19, 2025

Pots defined for the draw

The division of pots follows performance criteria in Eliminatórias and ranking of Liga in Nações. Italy divides Pote 1 with Dinamarca, Turquia and Ucrânia.

• Pot 1: Dinamarca, Itália, Turquia, Ucrânia
• Pot 2: Polônia, País of Gales, República Tcheca, Eslováquia
• Pot 3: Albânia, Irlanda, Kosovo, Bósnia and Herzegovina
• Pot 4: Suécia, Macedônia of Norte, Romênia, Irlanda of Norte

Negative history against Pote 4 rivals

Sweden eliminated Itália in the 2018 Copa play-off with an aggregate score of 1-0.

The only Pote 4 selection without a recent negative pass against Itália is Romênia.

Details of the Italian path

The Italian semi-final will be played on national territory on March 26th. The winner will face, five days later, the qualifier from the other duel from the same route. The decision will take place on March 31st, also in a single game.

Four European spots remain open for the expanded 48-team Mundial. Europa will have 16 representatives in total, 12 of which have already been guaranteed through direct classification.

Other repechage paths

Poland leads the Pote 2 seed group and hosts an opponent from Pote 3. Country of Gales, República Tcheca and Eslováquia complete the hosts for the remaining semifinals. Albania, led by Brazilian coach Sylvinho, is part of Pote 3 and plays away from home in the first phase.

The draw starts at 1pm (Brasília time) this Thursday and defines all clashes.

Format maintains tension until the end

The 16 teams were distributed into four brackets of four teams each. Each bracket gives a direct place to Copa from Mundo in 2026. The games in March 2026 decide the last European representatives in the tournament that will be played in Canadá, Estados Unidos and México.