Punters Backing Against Irish For 2026 World Cup Qualification Ahead Of Playoffs

The road to qualify for the 2026 World Cup takes another turn next week, with Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland in action as they try to book their ticket to this summer’s competition.

The semi-final stage of the European qualifying campaign gets underway on Thursday 26th March 2026, with Northern Ireland heading to Italy and the Republic of Ireland travelling to Czechia – and millions of football fans will be tuning in to watch.

William Hill have a whole host of markets available ahead of the World Cup qualifiers next week and punters will be keen to see if the Irish nations can defy the odds ahead of the first qualifying encounter.

Should the Republic of Ireland prevail in Prague, they will take on the winner of Denmark vs North Macedonia in Dublin for a place at the 2026 World Cup finals.

Czechia v Ireland Odds:

• Czechia – 19/20
• Draw – 9/4
• Republic of Ireland – 11/4

Meanwhile, if Northern Ireland manage to defeat four-time World Cup winners Italy in Bergamo, they will embark on another away fixture to either Cardiff (Wales) or Zenica (Bosnia and Herzegovina) for a showdown to qualify for the competition proper.

Italy v Northern Ireland Odds:

• Italy – 3/10
• Draw – 15/4
• Northern Ireland – 9/1

Spokesperson for William Hill, Lee Phelps, said: “With Ireland’s World Cup Qualifiers Semi-final just over a week away, our punters are already starting to take an interest, but not in their favour.

“So far, 78% of all bets in the 90-min market have been for Czechia, while Ireland have been backed by just 18% of bettors so far, with the rest predicting extra-time.

“It’s a similar story for Northern Ireland, who face Italy, with the home side taking a whopping 89% of bets in the 90-min market, while Northern Ireland have received just 10%.

“We expect some change as the games attract more interest closer to kick-off, but as it stands there is little confidence in the Emerald Isle from our customers.”

*Odds subject to change – prices accurate at the time of writing*