World Cup qualifying: Italy fail to qualify for third straight time; Turkiye to face USMNT

The four remaining spots for Europe have been sealed, and as a result, the USMNT will face Turkiye in the World Cup this summer

Francesco Porzio

Mar 31, 2026

7:01 pm ET

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2 min read

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Just two spots remain in the FIFA World Cup 2026 field as four tickets were punched in Europe on Tuesday, and the long-lasting question of whether Italy will be participating has been answered -- it's no. Again.

Italy lost in penalty kicks to Bosnia and Herzegovina on Tuesday, failing to qualify for the World Cup for the third straight edition in the latest disaster for the iconic national team.

Here's what to know:

Italy 1, Bosnia and Herzegovina 1 (4-1 in PKs)

Italy hit the crossbar and skied an attempt, allowing Bosnia to cruise in the shootout.

The match was tense from the very start, with the Azzurri struggling to cope with the relentless pressure from the home side. The breakthrough came after a costly mistake by Bosnia-Herzegovina's goalkeeper, Nikola Vasilj, who gave the ball away during the build-up. Italy, led by Gennaro Gattuso, reacted instantly, capitalizing on the error as Moise Kean calmly finished to score the opening goal, his second goal in a row, following his strike in last week's semifinal against Northern Ireland in Bergamo.

Despite falling behind, Bosnia and Herzegovina responded with even greater intensity, pushing forward in search of an equalizer. However, the momentum shifted dramatically just before halftime when Italy's Alessandro Bastoni was shown a red card for a foul on Memic, leaving the visitors with ten men for the remainder of the match.

The second half started like the first one ended, with Italy trying to defend the result but Bosnia pushed and managed to score in the 78th minute with Haris Tabakovic, who made it 1-1. Italy had to rely on at least four crucial saves of Gianluigi Donnarumma, but it was all Bosnia in the penalties.

Czechia 2, Denmark 2 (3-1 in PKs)

Czechia blew one-goal leads in both regulation and extra time, leading to the shootout, but they did enough from the spot to qualify for the World Cup.

Pavel Sulc scored a stunning opener for Czechia in the third minute, rifling home a loose ball off a corner kick, but Joachim Andersen's 72nd-minute goal brought things level, creating a tense final 20 minutes or so of regulation with the game going to extra time. Both teams scored in the extra session, but the hosts were far superior from the spot, returning to the World Cup for the first time since 2006.

Sweden 3, Poland 2

A goal in the 88th minute from Viktor Gyokeres sent Sweden to the World Cup after defeating Poland 3-2 on Tuesday in the playoffs. A back-and-forth game saw the Polish equalize twice quickly, once in each half, but it was the Arsenal striker who made the difference two minutes from time.

Turkiye 1, Kosovo 0

A goal from Kerem Akturkoglu early in the second half saw Turkiye punch their ticket to the 2026 FIFA World Cup, qualifying for the first time in 24 years. The victory means Turkiye will be in Group D, with the U.S. men's national team, Australia and Paraguay.

Still to come: Playoff tournament finals

Congo DR vs. Jamaica, 5 p.m. ET on FS1

Iraq vs. Bolivia, 11 p.m. ET on FS1

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