Czechia vs Denmark World Cup play-off final preview: Where to watch, kick-off time and team news
Tuesday, March 31, 2026
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All you need to know as Czechia and Denmark bid for a place at the 2026 FIFA World Cup finals.
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A place at the World Cup is at stake as Czechia welcome Denmark on Tuesday 31 March.
Match at a glance
When: Tuesday 31 March (20:45 CET kick-off)
Where: EPET ARENA, Prague
What: FIFA World Cup 2026 European play-off final
How to follow: Build-up and live coverage can be found here
Where to watch Czechia vs Denmark on TV
Fans can find their local European Qualifiers broadcast partner(s) here.
What do you need to know?
"It's been 20 years since our last World Cup appearance, and we'll do everything we can to get there," promised Czechia midfielder Tomáš Souček after his side's shoot-out success against the Republic of Ireland. However, Czechia have not beaten the Danes in seven games (D5 L2) since a 3-0 win in the quarter-finals of UEFA EURO 2004. They last met in the quarter-finals of EURO 2020, when Denmark won 2-1 in Baku.
Brian Riemer's Denmark will hope for more of the same after booking their final spot with a confident 4-0 victory over North Macedonia. As they eye a third consecutive World Cup berth, captain Pierre-Emile Højbjerg is enjoying the moment but remaining focused on the task at hand. "It means something special to me, but we're not done yet," the midfielder said.
Reporter's view: Ondřej Zlámal
Czechia coach Miroslav Koubek is considering changes to the starting 11 that will fight for a World Cup spot. Tomáš Souček is expected to return to marshal the midfield and some substitutes from the shoot-out win against the Republic of Ireland may start as well. Denmark will arrive in Prague boosted by a confident performance against North Macedonia. A lot is at stake, but spectacular passing football can still be expected from both sides.
Possible line-ups
Czechia: Kovář; Chaloupek, Hranáč, Krejčí; Coufal, Souček, Darida, Sadílek; Provod, Šulc; Schick
Denmark: Hermansen; Bah, Nørgaard, Nelsson, Mæhle; Højbjerg, Hjulmand, Froholdt; Isaksen, Højlund, Damsgaard
Views from the camps
Miroslav Koubek, Czechia coach: "I take my hat off to the team. We were 2-0 down [against the Republic of Ireland in the semi-finals], which is a situation that is hard to solve at international level but we handled it and managed to qualify. The match against Denmark will be a different type of game with different attributes. We have watched all of their qualifiers already but we need to analyse their match [against North Macedonia] and our performance."
Brian Riemer, Denmark coach: "First of all, I am looking forward to the game. It is important to look forward to big matches, even though there is also a lot of pressure. It is a huge match, and it is probably one of the biggest matches I have been involved with in my career so far. We are completely well prepared and ready. All we did today was let the players get a feel for the pitch."
What's in it for the winners?
The winners of this play-off final take the final position in Group A at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, joining co-hosts Mexico, South Africa and South Korea.