European FIFA World Cup play-off finals: Which Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2 stars are involved?
The European qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup draw to a close on Tuesday, with eight teams still in the fight for the four remaining spots. A host of Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2 players will be involved too - here's who to look out for...
Bosnia & Herzegovina vs. Italy
No members of the current Italy squad ply their trade in Germany, but there are plenty of Bosnian players who feature in either the Bundesliga or Bundesliga 2. National legend and current Schalke centre-forward Edin Džeko scored a late equaliser against Wales in the semi-final of Qualification Path A before watching his side win the subsequent shoot-out from the bench. The 40-year-old will likely captain his country again in the decider against the Azzurri.
He will be joined by Schalke teammate Nikola Katić, with St. Pauli's Nikola Vasilj between the sticks. Strike duo Ermedin Demirović (VfB Stuttgart) and Haris Tabaković (Borussia Mönchengladbach) will provide firepower alongside Džeko, while Karlsruhe's Dženis Burnić and Kerim Alajbegović, who will return to Bayer Leverkusen in the summer from Red Bull Salzburg, are also in the squad.
Watch: Džeko is back!
Sweden vs. Poland
Despite the abundance of talent at their disposal, including ex-St. Pauli striker Viktor Gyökeres - who scored a hat-trick against Ukraine in the semi-final of Qualification Path B - Sweden are having to secure their place at this summer's finals via the play-offs. They will be able to call on the talents of Borussia Dortmund's Daniel Svensson, as well as midfield trio Hugo Larsson (Eintracht Frankfurt), Mattias Svanberg (VfL Wolfsburg) and Eric Smith (St. Pauli) on Tuesday night.
Captained by Bayern Munich legend Robert Lewandowski, Poland reached this stage after coming from behind to beat Albania. Wolfsburg's Kamil Grabara and Cologne's Jakub Kamiński both started that encounter, while St. Pauli man Arkadiusz Pyrka appeared off the bench. All three will hope to make an impact in Solna.
Kosovo vs. Türkiye
Kosovo edged a thrilling encounter with Slovakia 4-3 in the semi-final of Qualification Path C, doing so in part thanks to goals from Hoffenheim's Fisnik Asllani and Fortuna Düsseldorf's Florent Muslija. Asllani's club teammate Albian Hajdari and Augsburg midfielder Elvis Rexhbecaj also started that match and will look to do so again against Türkiye, with a first-ever qualification for the finals on the line.
The Crescent-Stars narrowly overcame Romania last time out, with Ozan Kabak, also of Hoffenheim, coming on from the bench. Stuttgart's Atakan Karazor and Dortmund's Salih Özcan remained among the substitutes but will be eager to play their part as Türkiye continue their quest for a first participation at the World Cup since reaching the semi-finals in 2002.
Czechia vs. Denmark
All three members of Czechia's Bundesliga contingent started their penalty shoot-out win over the Republic of Ireland. Leverkusen striker Patrik Schick scored from the spot twice - in the 27th minute and in the shoot-out - while Hoffenheim duo Vladimír Coufal and Robin Hranáč helped their side come from two goals down to progress.
Wolfsburg's Joakim Mæhle played the full 90 minutes of Denmark's Qualification Path D semi-final win over North Macedonia, while Wolves teammate Christian Eriksen and Stuttgart man Nikolas Nartey - who was handed his senior debut - came on from the bench. Union Berlin goalkeeper Frederik Rønnow is also part of the squad, as is Jesper Lindström, who is on loan at Wolfsburg from Napoli.
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