Czechia at the FIFA World Cup 2026

History

Czechia's World Cup lineage extends through their predecessor state Czechoslovakia, which reached the final twice: runners-up in 1934 and 1962. As an independent nation since 1994, the Czech Republic made their only World Cup appearance in 2006, exiting in the group stage. Their 2026 qualification is therefore only their second World Cup as Czechia and ends a 20-year absence from the tournament. The combined Czechoslovak/Czech Republic record includes no titles.

Qualification

Czechia qualified through the UEFA World Cup playoff system. In the semi-finals they defeated the Republic of Ireland 4-3 on penalties after a 2-2 draw, then beat Denmark 3-1 on penalties following another 2-2 draw in the playoff final in Prague. Both ties were decided by penalty shootouts, making for a dramatic but ultimately successful campaign. The qualification ended a 20-year wait since their only previous World Cup appearance in 2006.

Preparation

Czechia opened their pre-tournament camp in Prague on 28 May 2026. On 31 May they played a farewell home friendly against Kosovo, winning 2-1 with goals from Tomáš Ladra and Adam Hložek; immediately afterwards coach Miroslav Koubek confirmed his final 26, cutting Pavel Bucha, Tomáš Ladra and Christophe Kabongo. The squad then travels to the United States, where they face Guatemala in a friendly on 4 June in Harrison, New Jersey before settling into their World Cup base. Key players include Patrik Schick and Tomáš Souček.

Latest news

Koubek confirms final 26: Bucha, Ladra and Kabongo cut

· squad

After the Kosovo friendly, coach Miroslav Koubek trimmed his 29-man provisional list to the final 26 for the World Cup, leaving out Pavel Bucha (FC Cincinnati), Tomáš Ladra (Viktoria Plzeň) and Christophe Kabongo (Mladá Boleslav). Koubek called the cuts probably the worst moment of his coaching career. Debutants Hugo Sochůrek, Alexandr Sojka and Denis Višinský kept their places.

Czechia beat Kosovo 2-1 in final home warm-up before the World Cup

· matches

Czechia won their farewell friendly 2-1 against Kosovo at the Generali Arena in Prague. Tomáš Ladra opened the scoring in the 12th minute and Adam Hložek added a second in the 32nd on his return from a long calf and foot injury; Lindon Emërllahu pulled one back for Kosovo in the 80th. Seventeen-year-old Hugo Sochůrek came on to become Czechia's youngest ever international.

Squad

PlayerPositionClub
Matěj KovářGKPSV Eindhoven
Jindřich StaněkGKSlavia Prague
Lukáš HorníčekGKBraga
Vladimír CoufalDFTSG Hoffenheim
Tomáš HolešDFSlavia Prague
Ladislav KrejčíDFWolverhampton Wanderers
David ZimaDFSlavia Prague
Jaroslav ZelenýDFSparta Prague
David JurásekDFSlavia Prague
David DouděraDFSlavia Prague
Robin HranáčDFTSG Hoffenheim
Štěpán ChaloupekDFSlavia Prague
Tomáš SoučekMFWest Ham United
Vladimír DaridaMFHradec Králové
Lukáš ProvodMFSlavia Prague
Michal SadílekMFSlavia Prague
Pavel ŠulcMFOlympique de Lyon
Lukáš ČervMFViktoria Plzeň
Hugo SochůrekMFSparta Prague
Alexandr SojkaMFViktoria Plzeň
Denis VišinskýMFViktoria Plzeň
Patrik SchickFWBayer Leverkusen
Adam HložekFWTSG Hoffenheim
Jan KuchtaFWSparta Prague
Tomáš ChorýFWSlavia Prague
Mojmír ChytilFWSlavia Prague

Recent results

  • 2024-03-22 — NOR 1-2 CZE (friendly)
  • 2024-03-26 — CZE 2-1 ARM (friendly)
  • 2024-06-07 — CZE 7-1 MLT (friendly)
  • 2024-06-10 — CZE 2-1 MKD (friendly)
  • 2025-03-22 — CZE 2-1 FRO (qualification)
  • 2025-03-25 — GIB 0-4 CZE (qualification)
  • 2025-06-06 — CZE 2-0 MNE (qualification)
  • 2025-06-09 — CRO 5-1 CZE (qualification)
  • 2025-09-05 — MNE 0-2 CZE (qualification)
  • 2025-09-08 — CZE 1-1 KSA (friendly)
  • 2025-10-09 — CZE 0-0 CRO (qualification)
  • 2025-10-12 — FRO 2-1 CZE (qualification)
  • 2025-11-13 — CZE 1-0 SMR (friendly)
  • 2025-11-17 — CZE 6-0 GIB (qualification)
  • 2026-03-26 — CZE 2-2 IRL (qualification)
  • 2026-03-31 — CZE 2-2 DEN (qualification)
  • 2026-05-31 — CZE 2-1 KOS (friendly)

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