We have all the info you need in one place on the route to the World Cup for Carla Ward’s Ireland ahead of this week’s draw.<\/p>\n
When is the Women’s World Cup playoff draw?<\/p>\n
The UEFA playoff draw for the 2027 Women’s World Cup will take place on\u00a0Thursday, June 18th\u00a0at\u00a011am Irish time.<\/p>\n
The draw will take place at UEFA HQ in Nyon, Switzerland, and will be streamed live on the UEFA website<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n How the playoffs work<\/p>\n The World Cup playoffs will take place over two rounds, with two separate paths in Round One. Ireland are in\u00a0Path 1, as a result of their strong League A performance in qualifying.<\/p>\n Here’s what you need to know about Ireland’s route through Round One of the playoffs:<\/p>\n 16 teams will enter both Path 1 and Path 2 Round Two\u00a0of the playoffs will see the Path 1 winners seeded against the Path 2 winners.<\/p>\n This means, should Ireland come through Round One, they will again be seeded for the second round, meaning they could secure a World Cup place on home soil.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Ireland’s potential Round One opponents<\/p>\n Ireland’s seeded route through Round One is hugely advantageous, as it means the highest-ranked team they could face is 45th in the world, Hungary. Ireland are up to 21st.<\/p>\n Here are the eight teams Ireland could draw in Round One of the World Cup playoffs, sorted by their world rankings:<\/p>\n Hungary (45th) We’re not getting ahead of ourselves, but it’s a hugely favourable list of potential opponents for Ireland.<\/p>\n \n Recommended\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Potential Round Two opponents<\/p>\n Should the Girls in Green overcome that test, they will face one of the Path 2 winners in the second round of the playoffs.<\/p>\n The seeded teams are expected to win out in Path 2, but shocks have occurred in previous years. Here’s every team entering Path 2.<\/p>\n Seeded: Serbia, Poland, Ukraine, Slovenia, Wales, Switzerland, Portugal, Scotland Even if these games could pose a major challenge to Ireland, they are higher ranked than any team from Path 2, meaning they would still be favourites to win their second-round tie.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Best-case scenario<\/p>\n The best-case scenario would see Ireland play\u00a0Kazakhstan\u00a0in Round One, followed by a Round Two game against a surprise, unseeded winner from Path 2.<\/p>\n The worst-case scenario would likely be to draw\u00a0Hungary\u00a0in Round One, before a renewal of their battle with\u00a0Poland\u00a0in Round Two. Ireland beat Poland twice in qualifying, but they remain the strongest team in this section of the draw.<\/p>\n However, speaking to\u00a0Balls.ie after last week’s defeat to France in Grenoble, Ireland centre-back Caitlin Hayes said that the team would fear no country in the upcoming playoffs.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n What happens if Ireland win?<\/p>\n If Ireland win in both Round One and Round Two,\u00a0they will qualify for the 2027 World Cup in Brazil.<\/p>\n It would mark just the second time Ireland would qualify for a major international tournament, and make it back-to-back World Cup qualifications after the historic trip to Australia in 2023.<\/p>\n Intriguingly, Ireland have already ruled out the possibility of a potential banana peel.<\/p>\n Of the eight Round Two winners, only\u00a0seven\u00a0will qualify automatically for the World Cup. The eight winners will be sorted according to their final position in qualifying (according to the overall Nations League table), with the lowest-ranked placed in FIFA’s convoluted intercontinental playoff tournament for the final spot in Brazil.<\/p>\n However, Ireland’s strong qualifying performance sees them ranked 5th overall of all teams in the playoffs, meaning they\u00a0cannot\u00a0drop into the intercontinental playoff spot.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Key Women’s World Cup playoff dates<\/p>\n Playoff draw:\u00a0Thursday, June 18th It remains unclear where Ireland will play their<\/p>\n https:\/\/www.balls.ie\/football\/denise-osullivan-ireland-playoff-cork-656913<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Ireland’s qualifying results thus far<\/p>\n MD1:\u00a0Ireland 1-2 France<\/a> (Tallaght)<\/p>\n MD2:\u00a0Netherlands 2-1 Ireland<\/a> (Utrecht)<\/p>\n MD3: Poland 2-3 Ireland<\/a> (Gdansk)<\/p>\n MD4:\u00a0Ireland 1-0 Poland<\/a> (Aviva Stadium)<\/p>\n
\nIreland are\u00a0seeded in Path 1
\nAs a seeded team, Ireland will face a\u00a0League C group winner or runner-up
\nIreland will also enjoy home advantage for the second leg in Round One
\nPath 2 sees the League A 4th-placed teams and League B group winners seeded around the League B runners-up and 3rd-placed teams<\/p>\n
\nBelarus (52nd)
\nRomania (53rd)
\nGreece (59th)
\nCroatia (63rd)
\nKosovo (85th)
\nLithuania (94th)
\nKazakhstan (100th)<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\nUnseeded:\u00a0Czechia, Albania, Turkiye, Northern Ireland, Finland, Slovakia, Belgium, Israel<\/p>\n
\nRound One:\u00a07th – 13th October, 2026
\nRound Two:\u00a028th November – 5th December, 2026<\/p>\n