Quartet of World Cup berths up for grabs in 2026

In 2026, the World Cup will be the subject of intense conversation on international football on the island of Ireland.

Over the course of the next year, Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland’s men’s and women’s teams, respectively, will aim for the top two finishes, even though some may think the world’s finals may come just too soon for some.

In qualifying against Germany, Slovakia, and Luxembourg, Michael O’Neill’s Northern Ireland team was always unlikely to place in Group A’s sole automatic position against the USA, Canada, or Mexico.

Due to Germany’s surprise defeat in Bratislava, the anticipated straight shootout with Slovakia for the title didn’t materialize, but by the time Northern Ireland traveled to Kosice in their penultimate game, they were almost certain of their play-off spot anyway thanks to their Nations League C victory in 2024.

Therefore, their humiliating defeat was only relevant for seeding, but it became more significant when Northern Ireland and Italy met in a distant semi-final.

Despite having no impact on the qualification picture in the end, O’Neill’s six games were not pointless because the young panel he used in his second spell is increasingly at home abroad.

Trai Hume and Daniel Ballard both demonstrated the value of regular Premier League football during the campaign, and O’Neill will hope that 2026 will give his squad more exposure in the top flight.

O’Neill now appears to have settled on 10 of his preferred XI, who should all be fit for Italy’s trip to Bergamo, thanks to Swansea’s Ethan Galbraith’s performance.

Since Kyle Lafferty’s goals sent them to Euro 2016, the only question mark still stands over the number nine.

Jamie Donley, a Tottenham player, scored the winning penalty against Luxembourg last time out, but he is still struggling for minutes while on loan at Stoke.

Another important storyline throughout the year will be whether the 20-year-old can keep holding onto the jersey despite the absence of club football.

In the end, O’Neill has stated that he believes this group has a significant tournament in them, whether now or in the future, but that is ultimately the overarching goal.

It’s unlikely that two teams would have traveled in the same location before reaching the 2026 World Cup play-offs despite having taken different routes.

The Republic of Ireland’s journey had plenty of twists and turns, even if Northern Ireland’s final route to the crucial match was ultimately anticlimactic.

It appeared as though 2026’s biggest story would be the search for manager Heimir Hallgrimsson’s successor, who would be seemingly uninterested after one point from their first three games, which included an Armenian defeat.

Instead, Troy Parrott scored five goals in four days to beat Hungary in Budapest and Portugal in Dublin.

It was easy to forget that the most remarkable story still had a chapter or two to write when Parrott’s hat-trick against Hungary came to an end in injury time of a 3-2 victory.

A draw that resulted in an away semi-final against the Czech Republic might have been more difficult, especially considering that a potential final would be against either Denmark or North Macedonia in Dublin.

Hallgrimsson’s future is still a subplot of the year ahead because the former Iceland manager’s contract expires at the end of the side’s World Cup participation.

The powers that be will be attempting to hold him back, whether that is in March or over the summer.

What lies ahead for Parrott? The 23-year-old has already stated his happiness at AZ Alkmaar in the Eredivisie, but some in England may be considering moving for him in 2026. He has scored 21 goals in this campaign.

Evan Ferguson’s loan spell at Roma may have ended, leaving his club’s prospects in doubt once more.

The chances of a fresh start in 2026 are slim with the appointment of a new manager and a World Cup qualifying campaign, despite the women’s experience in Northern Ireland in 2025.

Before World Cup qualifying kicks off in March, the IFA will look to name a replacement for Tanya Oxtoby, who left to take over at Newcastle United Women in November.

The key goal will be to find a manager who can expand on the work Oxtoby did and guide NI through this transitional period.

Switzerland, Turkey, and Malta will face Northern Ireland in Group B2.

Similar rules apply to the Nations League, which will take place in Brazil in 2027.

Only the top four League A winners will automatically advance to the finals, with the rest of the teams having to compete in the play-offs for the final eight spots.

The minimum requirement for NI to win a play-off is that they must not finish last in their group.

Without their captain and key player Simone Magill, who gave birth to them in November, they must navigate a difficult group and then potentially two play-off ties against League A sides.

Finding a consistent goal scorer or a few players who can shoulder that burden will be difficult to replace, but the new manager’s priority will be finding one next year.

Given the short time frame during which NI and Oxtoby’s successor will collaborate with the players when appointed, it seems like this qualifying campaign will be overdue.

The Republic of Ireland women’s team had a hearty victory in their final competitive game of 2025, which changed the course of the year.

Under Carla Ward, steady progress had been made, but Abbie Larkin’s injury-time goal gave them a 5-4 overall victory in their Nations League promotion/relegation play-off against Belgium.

That immediately resulted in Ward’s team winning regardless of where they finish in League A for World Cup qualifying.

They are now in a much better position than NI to win a second successive World Cup, which is their top priority in 2026.

They will face France, the Netherlands, and Poland in the top-tier qualifying bracket, which would have always meant a difficult draw. They will instead face France, the Netherlands, and Spain, who have already qualified from the European Cup.

The winning group and qualifying automatically seem like a push for Ward’s side, but they will aim for a second or third place finish because it will theoretically face a League C side in the first round.