Czechia are back on the FIFA World Cup stage after a 20-year absence.
Their return to FIFA World Cup 2026™ came in dramatic fashion after successive penalty-shootout victories over Republic of Ireland and Denmark in the UEFA play-offs.
Now, Czechia will head to North America aiming to make an impact in a group featuring Mexico, South Africa and Korea Republic.
Miroslav Koubek took charge of Czechia in December 2025, replacing Ivan Hasek after a difficult qualifying campaign.
The 74-year-old former goalkeeper made an immediate impact, guiding the team through two dramatic play-off matches in his first games as head coach.
Koubek has decades of coaching experience, including several spells with Viktoria Plzen and time with Czechia’s U-19 national team.
Czechia finished second in their UEFA qualifying group behind Croatia, sending them into the play-offs.
In the semi-final against Republic of Ireland, Czechia fell 2-0 behind before fighting back through a Patrik Schick penalty and a late Ladislav Krejci equaliser.
They advanced on penalties and then faced Denmark in another tense play-off clash.
After a 2-2 draw following extra time, Michal Sadilek scored the decisive penalty to send Czechia to FIFA World Cup 2026™.
Czechia previously competed as Czechoslovakia before later appearing as Czech Republic after the split with Slovakia.
Czechia’s greatest World Cup achievements came as Czechoslovakia, finishing runners-up in both 1934 and 1962.
At Italy 1934, they defeated Romania, Switzerland and Germany before losing to hosts Italy after extra time in the final.
At Chile 1962, Czechoslovakia beat Hungary and Yugoslavia in the knockout rounds before falling to Brazil in the final.
Czechia’s last World Cup appearance came at Germany 2006.
They started brightly with a 3-0 victory over USA, powered by a Tomas Rosicky double.
However, defeats to Ghana and Italy ended their campaign at the group stage.
Czechoslovakia made their FIFA World Cup debut at Italy 1934.
They reached the final after impressive victories over Romania, Switzerland and Germany.
Antonin Puc gave them the lead against hosts Italy in the final, but the Azzurri equalised before scoring the winner in extra time.
Oldrich Nejedly is Czechia’s all-time leading World Cup scorer with seven goals.
He was the top scorer at the 1934 tournament with five goals and added two more at France 1938.
Tomas Skuhravy follows behind with five World Cup goals.
Ladislav Novak holds Czechia’s World Cup appearance record with 12 matches.
The defender played across three World Cups and was a key figure in the team that reached the 1962 final.
Czechia’s World Cup history includes several dramatic moments from their two runs to the final.
Oldrich Nejedly’s hat-trick against Germany in the 1934 semi-final remains one of the nation’s greatest individual performances.
At Chile 1962, Adolf Scherer scored twice late against Yugoslavia to send Czechoslovakia into the final.
Another memorable moment came at Italy 1990, when Tomas Skuhravy scored a hat-trick in a 4-1 Round of 16 victory over Costa Rica.
Czechia’s biggest World Cup victory came as Czechoslovakia at Sweden 1958.
They defeated Argentina 6-1, with Zdenek Zikan and Vaclav Hovorka both scoring twice in a stunning group-stage performance.
After two decades away from the FIFA World Cup, Czechia return with renewed belief and a squad ready to compete.
Their dramatic qualification journey has already created a strong storyline — now they will aim to write the next chapter in North America.
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