Czechia vs Denmark prediction 31.03.2026 | FIFA World Cup Playoffs

Czechia secured their place in Tuesday’s World Cup playoff showdown with a dramatic penalty shootout victory against Ireland last weekend. Having fallen two goals behind, the hosts produced a superb comeback, with Ladislav Krejci scoring with just four minutes remaining to level the tie at 2-2 and force extra time.

With no further goals in the additional 30 minutes, Miroslav Koubek’s side eventually emerged with a 4-3 win on penalties.

Usually solid in home fixtures, Czechia avoided defeat in five previous World Cup qualifiers since September, picking up three victories and two draws. Over a longer period, the home nation have lost only two of 16 previous matches.

Head coach Koubek is likely to stick with the same XI that started against Ireland. Tomas Soucek, Michal Sadilek, Stepan Chaloupek and Jan Kliment are among those pushing for recalls after featuring from the bench in that fixture.

Vaclav Cerny remains unavailable after missing the win against Ireland.

Denmark come into Tuesday’s crucial fixture with spirits high after a commanding 4-0 win against North Macedonia last week. Goals from Mikkel Damsgaard, Gustav Isaksen (2) and Christian Norgaard secured a comfortable victory in Copenhagen.

The Danes had looked set to secure automatic qualification for the finals, but a shock 2:2 draw against Belarus and a 4:2 defeat to Scotland forced Brian Riemer’s side into the playoffs.

While favourites to secure qualification for the World Cup, an unconvincing campaign and the tight nature of previous meetings between these nations suggest a tough night in store for Riemer’s men.

Denmark are expected to name an unchanged starting XI following Thursday’s 4:0 semi-final win. The Danes have been dealing with several injury concerns, with Kasper Schmeichel, Andreas Christensen, Rasmus Kristensen and Jannik Vestergaard among those ruled out.