THERE’S plenty of ifs, buts and maybes as Steve Clarke and Scotland wait to discover their World Cup 2026 draw fate.
It’s been confirmed the national team will be in Pot THREE when the ceremony takes place on December 13.
Cristiano Ronaldo left Hampden in a huff[/caption]
Wales’ Head Coach Craig Bellamy[/caption]
That means we’re sure to get two higher ranked teams in our group – whether we’re in a four or five team section.
And that will be a challenge with only the winners of each qualifying group qualify as of right for the expanded World Cup in North America in the summer of 2026 with the runners-up landing a play-off spot.
It’s more likely – but not confirmed – that we will be in a four-team group, as opposed to a five-team group.
That’s because we’ll have Nations League relegation play-offs to contend with while some five-team groups are getting underway.
That would keep us from England and Switzerland, who are CONFIRMED to be in a five-team group as they’re the only Pot 1 teams who DON’T have Nations League commitments.
With a total of 28 teams still set to be involved in March, and 14 teams still involved in June, December’s draw could see us face ‘winner of Nations League quarter final’ or ‘loser of Nations League quarter final’.
So we’ve turned to the supercomputer at We Global Football for their World Cup 2006 qualifying draw simulator.
One of a number of simulations on their site, they’ve put us, as expected, in a FOUR team group – meaning we get under way in September.
And they’ve given us a Nations League re-match against Cristiano Ronaldo and Roberto Martinez‘s Portugal, who we drew against at Hampden only last month.
The global superstar left Hampden in a huff so it would be great to welcome him back.
Next they’ve matched us with former Celtic hero Craig Bellamy‘s Wales – a team who are sure of playing top tier matches in the Nations League.
They could have Rangers stars Rabbi Matondo, Tom Lawrence and Ben Davies in their ranks – and they’re ranked nine spots higher in the rankings.
And the group is completed by Baltic nation Estonia, who famously didn’t turn up for a match against the Scots back in the 1990s.
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