Wales Draw Bosnia at Home as Northern Ireland Face Trip to Italy in World Cup Play Offs

Wales will welcome Bosnia and Herzegovina to Cardiff in the World Cup play off semi finals, while Northern Ireland have been handed a challenging away tie against Italy following the draw made in Switzerland. The winners of the two semi finals will meet in a one match final for a place at next year’s World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico, with the winner of the Wales fixture guaranteed home advantage in that final.

The Republic of Ireland were also placed into a difficult path and must travel to the Czech Republic, with a potential home decider to follow against either Denmark or North Macedonia. All semi finals will be played on 26 March and the finals will be held on 31 March, with every tie decided in a single match.

Sixteen nations are competing for the four European places still available at the World Cup. Twelve sides entered the play offs by finishing second in their qualifying groups, while four more, including Northern Ireland, advanced through their Nations League success last year. The draw was structured so that top seeded teams hosted sides from the lowest pot, while teams in the middle pots were matched accordingly, with each path also determining where the final would be played.

Wales have once again benefited from home comfort. Since this single leg format was introduced, Wales have played all of their previous four play off matches at Cardiff City Stadium and they now have an opportunity to extend that run to six consecutive home ties. Their first task will be overcoming Bosnia and Herzegovina, the team they defeated at the same venue to secure their place at Euro 2016, which was their first appearance at a major tournament in fifty eight years. Should they progress, a potential final could see them host Italy, who lost on their most recent visit to Cardiff in 2002 when current Wales head coach Craig Bellamy scored the winning goal. Italy manager Gennaro Gattuso was a substitute that day. Italy are the highest ranked nation in the play offs and represent the most difficult possible opponent.

Northern Ireland, meanwhile, face a daunting route. They have met Italy on eleven occasions and have recorded only a single victory, a famous win in 1958 that helped secure qualification for the World Cup in Sweden that year. Victory would require Northern Ireland to produce their most significant result in decades and even if they manage to defeat Italy, they would be away from home again in any potential final against either Wales or Bosnia. According to FIFA rankings, this is the toughest possible path for Michael O’Neill’s team.

The intercontinental play off draw also took place, confirming that two of the six competing nations will reach the World Cup. Matches will be played in Mexico during the March international break. The four lowest ranked nations will contest the semi finals, with the two highest ranked teams, DR Congo and Iraq, automatically placed into the final stage. New Caledonia will face Jamaica in one semi final, while Bolivia will meet Suriname in the other, with the winners advancing to play the seeded teams for a place at the tournament.

The World Cup draw, which will include both England and Scotland, is scheduled to take place on 5 December in Washington DC.