Czechia has announced its full 26-player squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. It’s the eighth time the country has qualified for the FIFA World Cup. Six of those eight tournament appearances were achieved as Czechoslovakia, before the nation split into Czechia and Slovakia. Their best World Cup performances came as Czechoslovakia in 1934 and 1962, when they reached the final but finished as runners-up.
Head coach Miroslav Koubek announced the full squad earlier today. Ladislav Krejčí is the team’s captain. The 27-year-old Wolverhampton Wanderers centre-back is one of the most important players in the team. Another key player in the squad is Tomáš Souček. The West Ham United midfielder is the most experienced player in the team. Other key players in the team are Vladimir Coufal (TSG Hoffenheim), Vladimir Darida (Hradec Králové), Adam Hložek (TSG Hoffenheim), and striker Patrik Schick (Bayer Leverkusen).
Full Squad Czechia For The 2026 FIFA World Cup
Goalkeepers: Lukáš Horníček (Braga), Matěj Kovář (PSV Eindhoven), Jindřich Staněk (Slavia Prague)
Defenders: Vladimir Coufal (Hoffenheim), David Douděra (Slavia Prague), Tomáš Holeš (Slavia Prague), Robin Hranáč (Hoffenheim), Štěpán Chaloupek (Slavia Prague), David Jurásek (Slavia Prague), Ladislav Krejčí (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Jaroslav Zelený (Slavia Prague), David Zima (Slavia Prague)
Midfielders: Lukáš Červ (Viktoria Plzen), Vladimír Darida (Hradec Králové), Lukáš Provod (Slavia Prague), Michal Sadílek (Slavia Prague), Hugo Sochůrek (Sparta Prague), Alexandr Sojka (Viktoria Plzeň), Tomáš Souček (West Ham United), Pavel Šulc (Lyon), Denis Višinský (Viktoria Plzeň)
Forwards: Adam Hložek (Hoffenheim), Tomáš Chorý (Slavia Prague), Mojmir Chytil (Slavia Prague), Jan Kuchta (Sparta Prague), Patrik Schick (Bayer Leverkusen)
Qualification For The 2026 FIFA World Cup
The Czechs had a tough qualification campaign for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. They had to qualify in a group with Croatia, the Faroe Islands, Montenegro, and Gibraltar. The Czechs knew that Croatia would be the main rival for the top spot in the group. Czechia went off to a great start with nine points out of the first three matches. Main goal scorer Patrik Schick scored four goals in total. On matchday 4, the Czechs took on Croatia in Osijek. Although the Czechs equalised through Tomáš Souček just before the hour mark after Croatia took the lead, the final thirty minutes turned into a disaster, with Czechia conceding four goals to lose 5-1. The Czechs bounced back with a win over Montenegro and a draw at home against Croatia. Trailing Croatia by three points, the Czechs knew they had to win all their remaining matches and hope Croatia dropped points just to draw level.
On October 12, 2025, Czechia suffered a shocking loss against the Faroe Islands, leaving them trailing Croatia by six points. Czechia won their last game against Gibraltar, but they already knew their path to the 2026 FIFA World Cup would require going through the playoffs. The Czechs played a mini-tournament and took on Ireland in Prague in the semi-final. Ireland took an early 0-2 lead. The Czechs looked completely down and out, but they staged a brilliant comeback thanks to goals from Patrik Schick and Ladislav Krejčí. After 120 minutes, the match was decided with a penalty shootout. The Czechs won, and five days later in Prague, they faced Denmark for a ticket to the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Czechia led in normal time and extra time, but Denmark managed to equalise twice. Just like five days earlier, the penalty shootout would decide the winner. Czechia missed one penalty, but the Danes missed three, allowing the Czechs to qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup in front of their home crowd.
2026 FIFA World Cup
Czechia is part of Group A. The Czechs open their World Cup on June 11 in Guadalajara, Mexico, where they will take on South Korea. Seven days later, they take on South Africa in Atlanta, Georgia. For their final group stage match, they travel to Mexico City to take on hosts Mexico on June 24. The two group winners and the eight best third-placed teams from each group will advance to the next stage.
Czechia Schedule
- June 11 – South Korea (10 pm EST)
- June 18 – South Africa (12 pm EST)
- June 24 – Mexico (9 pm EST)
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