#world-cup-qualifying

#world-cup-qualifying

ZURICH, Switzerland (AP) The final six places for the 2026 World Cup will be determined by two playoff tournaments in March. Four more teams will qualify from Europe, along with two from the rest of the world. The UEFA playoffs will consist of 16 nations, while FIFA's intercontinental playoffs feature six. The successful teams will join the 42 other nations to have qualified for the World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico, which runs through June and July. Here's what to know about the playoffs.

PRAGUE -- The Czech Republic soccer association stripped Tomás Soucek of his captaincy Tuesday and denied financial bonuses to national team players as punishment for ignoring their fans after their final World Cup qualifier against Gibraltar. Czechia, who had been assured of second place in Group L, won the home game 6-0 in Olomouc on Monday, but the players didn't go thank the diehard fans who were critical of their performance in the qualifying campaign.

Wales already have their place in the World Cup qualifying play-offs, but there is still a chance they could gain an automatic spot in Group J. The Dragons currently sit third, behind tonight's opponents North Macedonia and Belgium, but it is tight at the top. A win on home soil will guarantee them second place, but a slip-up from the Red Devils against Liechtenstein and top spot is theirs.

Spain are of course one of the best teams in the world and to play them at Wembley again is exciting,

Hungary and the Republic of Ireland are hoping to at least seal places in the 2026 World Cup qualifying play-offs when they meet at the Puskas Arena on Sunday. While the sides could still qualify directly by winning Group F if Portugal slip up at home to Armenia, the likelihood is that the winners of the match will earn the second spot required for a play-off place.

Mikel Oyarzabal scored twice as Spain maintained their perfect form in World Cup qualifying with a 4-0 win in Georgia on Saturday as it closed in on a berth at next year's showpiece tournament. Luis de la Fuente's side has scored 19 times while conceding zero goals in five group victories. The European champions are poised to wrap up a spot in the finals when they meets Turkey on Tuesday in their last qualifier.

We are playing in front of our fans against a team we respect, but they're a team against whom we want to demonstrate our level and secure qualification. Armenia are a team that tries to play. They're very intelligent and have creative ability. Defensively, they have a solid back five. They're a very competitive team, which we respect a lot. I really like the coach's work.

"I'm happy to be back with the team. It's a lot of fun to be on the pitch with these guys. Representing my country is always an honor. I'm happy to get an assist today and repay the coach's trust a bit. We know each other well, we have a good relationship and a good exchange. Being at the World Cup is my big goal. We'll see what happens."

It's clearly a foul on Daniel. It's a foul, it isn't given and the goal stands. The yellow card for Daniel is just a joke - when you look at the incident back, it's poor. We feel a bit aggrieved because of that.

It was a far from fluid performance for Didier Deschamps' final competitive match in Paris, with the coach set to leave after the tournament. And it took an Mbappé penalty, delivered via a Panenka, in the 55th minute to break Ukraine's resistance, but that was needed to start the celebrations in the French capital. Olise's shot on the turn put the result beyond doubt before Mbappé and Ekitike added gloss in the final 10 minutes.