Preview
Written by Yaro Pavlenko
Sixteen European nations still remain in the hunt for the final places in the 2026 World Cup this summer, and have a high-stakes play-off segment to contend with to secure their ticket in the USA/Canada/Mexico. Among the sides remaining are Home Nations Wales and Northern Ireland, as well as the Republic of Ireland.
Read on below as Spreadex Sports previews the play-offs and explains how this round works, as well as providing the latest fixed odds and spread betting prices for all of the matches!
*Odds and Spread Betting Prices subject to change
The play-offs will take place over two dates - the initial semi-final matches will be played on Thursday, 26th March 2026, with the winners of those matches playing a play-off final on Tuesday, 31st March 2026.
The play-offs consist of the 12 second-placed teams in the initial qualifying group stage along with the four best-ranked Nations League teams, with four play-off 'paths'. Teams have seedings based on their World Ranking, with the first three seedings pots based solely on this, while pot four is only for the Nations League sides.
Path A consists of semi-finals between Wales vs Bosnia & Herzegovina and Italy vs Northern Ireland. The winners of those semi-finals will face-off in a play-off final for a place in the World Cup.
Path B consists of semi-finals between Ukraine v Sweden and Poland v Albania, with the winners facing each other.
Path C consists of Slovakia v Kosovo and Turkey v Romania, with the winners facing each other.
Finally, Path D consists of Czech Republic v Republic of Ireland and Denmark v North Macedonia, with the winners facing each other.
thursday 26 march 2026 (semi finals) - home team listed first
17:00: Turkey v Romania19:45: Czech Republic v Republic of Ireland19:45: Denmark v North Macedonia19:45: Italy v Northern Ireland, live on BBC Three19:45: Poland v Albania19:45: Slovakia v Kosovo19:45: Ukraine v Sweden19:45: Wales v Bosnia & Herzegovina, live on BBC Two
tuesday 31 march 2026 (final) - home team listed first
19:45: Czech Republic/Republic of Ireland v Denmark/North Macedonia19:45: Wales/Bosnia & Herzegovina v Italy/Northern Ireland19:45: Ukraine/Sweden v Poland/Albania19:45: Slovakia/Kosovo v Turkey/Romania
Spreadex Sports will be offering a multitude of both fixed odds and spread betting markets on all of the World Cup qualifying play-offs, as well as the 2026 World Cup itself.
In terms of the match odds for the semi-finals, the latest odds are listed below*. Click on each match to visit the individual pricing page for our full list of fixed odds and spread betting prices, as well as Price Boosts.
Turkey v Romania - HOME 8/15 | DRAW 10/3 | AWAY 17/4
Czech Republic v Rep. of Ireland - HOME 19/20 | DRAW 23/10 | AWAY 29/10
Denmark v North Macedonia - HOME 3/10 | DRAW 4/1 | AWAY 17/2
Italy v Northern Ireland - HOME 2/7 | DRAW 4/1 | AWAY 10/1
Poland v Albania - HOME 8/13 | DRAW 13/5 | AWAY 19/4
Slovakia v Kosovo - HOME 10/11 | DRAW 23/10 | AWAY 3/1
Ukraine v Sweden - HOME 15/8 | DRAW 21/10 | AWAY 6/4
Wales v Bosnia & Herzegovina - HOME 17/20 | DRAW 9/4 | AWAY 7/2
You can view all of our available odds and markets by clicking the link below:
Click here to view all of the available Odds and Prices for the 2026 World Cup European play-offs.
Click here to view all of the available Odds and Prices for the 2026 World Cup.
Click here to view our guide on How to Spread Bet on Football, including our handy Spread Betting Calculator.
Remember that with spread betting, get the bet wrong and losses can exceed your stake/deposit so it's important you understand how each market works before setting an appropriate stake size for your bet.
*Please note that this preview is not designed to offer any betting advice or suggestions. Any/all prices quoted correct as of 18th March 2026, and may be subject to change/fluctuation.
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