Czech Republic Defeats Denmark to Become 45th Country Qualified for the World Cup

With drama included, Czech Republic defeated Denmark and sealed their return to the World Cup after 20 years of absence.

Early Domination and Danish Response

Prague witnessed a match that started perfectly for the home side. Just in the 3rd minute, Pavel Šulc opened the scoring with a spectacular goal that ignited the crowd. From there, the Czechs dominated the first half, backed by a solid defense that completely nullified Denmark.

The Danish team failed to create any clear chances in the first half and did not register a single shot on target against Matěj Kovář.

However, the second half changed everything. Denmark came out with a different attitude, and after the coach’s adjustments, they took control of the ball and pushed Czech Republic back into their own half. The pressure paid off in the 72nd minute when Joachim Andersen equalized from a free kick, in a play that also involved a poor exit from Kovář.

Drama Until the Penalties

In the final minutes of regular time, Czech Republic reacted and regained the initiative, which continued into extra time. The home team pushed forward and trapped Denmark in their own area. The effort was rewarded when Ladislav Krejčí scored the second goal following a cross from Vladimír Coufal, which ended in a series of rebounds inside the box. Prague erupted: the ticket was near.

But the drama wasn’t over. From a corner, Kasper Høgh rose with a powerful header to equalize and send the match to penalties.

From the spot, Denmark struggled, missing three shots; the only scorer was Christian Eriksen. Czech Republic, fueled by their fans, did not miss. Michal Sadílek converted the decisive penalty, sending the stadium into frenzy.

Czech Republic returns to a World Cup after two decades. This will be their tenth participation overall and their second as an independent nation. When competing as Czechoslovakia, they reached two finals, in 1934 against Italy and in 1962 versus Brazil.

The Czechs will be part of Group A along with Mexico, South Africa, and South Korea. They will debut on June 11 in Zapopan against South Korea; then face South Africa on June 18 in Atlanta, and close the group stage on June 24 at Estadio Azteca against Mexico.

With an emotional night in Prague, Czech Republic claims the 45th ticket to the World Cup, ending a 20-year drought.