The Czech Republic has secured a ticket to the FIFA World Cup after 20 years. They qualified by defeating Denmark 3-1 in a penalty shootout. The match ended 1-1 in regular time and 2-2 after extra time, with the winner decided by penalties. Kathmandu, 18 Chaitra.
The European nation earned their place in the FIFA World Cup 2026 on Tuesday night by beating Denmark in the European playoff. Previously, the Czech Republic last participated in the 2006 World Cup held in Germany, marking this as their first re-entry into the tournament in two decades.
During the penalty shootout, three of the Czech players scored out of four attempts, while three Danish players missed their shots. For the Czech team, Tomáš Chorý, Tomáš Souček, and Michael Sadílek converted their penalties, whereas Ladislav Krejčí missed his. For Denmark, only Christian Eriksen scored, while Rasmus Højlund, Andreas Dreyer, and Matthias Jensen failed to find the net.
At the start of the match, the Czech Republic took the lead twice, but Denmark equalized each time. Pelé Suls opened the scoring in the third minute, giving the Czech side an early lead. Joachim Andersen leveled the score in the 72nd minute. After regular time ended, 30 minutes of extra time was added. Ladislav Krejčí scored in the 100th minute to put the Czechs ahead again, but Kasper Høgh equalized for Denmark in the 111th minute, making it 2-2. With no further goals, the game was decided by penalties.
Going forward, the Czech Republic will compete in Group A of the World Cup 2026 against co-host Mexico, South Africa, and South Korea.
