Who: Ukraine vs France
What: UEFA qualifiers for 2026 FIFA World Cup
Where: Tarczynski Arena Wroclaw in Wroclaw, Poland
When: Friday, September 5, at 8:45pm (19:45 GMT)
How to follow: We’ll have all the build-up on Al Jazeera Sport from 5:45pm (16:45 GMT) in advance of our live text commentary stream.
European football’s focus switches to qualifying for the 2026 World Cup for the next two weeks, but that is only the beginning of an 11-week period in which six games each will be played to help decide who advances to the tournament.
The European qualifying programme involves 54 teams but 24 of them are only kicking a ball for the first time on their intended road to play on football’s biggest stage in the United States, Canada and Mexico starting next year on June 11.
France, the 2018 World Cup winner, starts its qualifying campaign for the 2026 edition away against Ukraine in Les Bleus’ first game in the competition since losing an epic final against Argentina in December 2022 at the Qatar World Cup.
Al Jazeera Sport takes a look at Ukraine’s game against France and explains why so many of the teams are only joining qualifying now.
Why is Ukraine vs France being played in Poland?
Ukraine will host that game in Wroclaw in neutral Poland because of security concerns at home during the Russian military invasion.
Russia’s teams were banned by UEFA and FIFA from all international competitions in February 2022 when the war began.
Why have France not played any World Cup qualifiers yet?
France, along with 23 other teams, are only joining the qualifying programme for the World Cup now due to the progress of some of the top seeds in the 2025 Nations League, which culminated in June.
Portugal were crowned champions as they beat Spain 5-3 on penalties in the 2025 final in this year’s final.
Spain overcame France in the semifinal, while Portugal beat Germany. The rest of the qualifiers for the latter stages of that tournament are also only entering the World Cup qualifiers now.
Who else is in Ukraine and France’s group?
Iceland and Azerbaijan complete Group D of the UEFA World Cup Qualifiers.
How do the qualifiers work for France, Portugal and the other teams joining the qualifiers now?
There are already six groups under way in the European qualifying for the 2026 World Cup, comprising five teams each. Four rounds of games have already been played.
The further six groups entering qualifying now are made up of four teams each.
The top teams from the 12 groups advance directly to next summer’s finals, while the 12 runners-up go into playoffs where they will be joined by the four best-placed Nations League sides that don’t qualify at this stage.
For more on the format of the playoffs, click here to read our full breakdown in our preview of Wednesday’s first set of qualifiers at this stage.
What are France’s thoughts on joining the qualification now?
France defender Jules Kounde has called for a reassessment of football’s increasingly congested calendar, warning that the sport’s excessive schedule is affecting not only players but the broader ecosystem around the game.
Speaking ahead of France’s games against Ukraine and Iceland, who the French host in Paris on Wednesday, Kounde said the relentless pace of fixtures was taking a toll.
“It’s not just about the players,” he said. “There are families. I also think about all the people who work around football and who are sometimes victims of this relentless pace.”
Kounde, who plays for Barcelona, did not feature in this year’s expanded FIFA Club World Cup, which ran from June 14 to July 13 in United States, but the 26-year-old still hinted at the tournament’s impact on the already packed season.
Manchester City’s Rayan Cherki and Arsenal’s William Saliba have pulled out of the double header with injury while Paris Saint-Germain forward Ousmane Dembele missed training on Tuesday because of a thigh injury.
PSG, who reached the Club World Cup final, played 65 matches in the 2024-25 season.
“It’s a whole ecosystem,” he said.
“Sometimes in life, when we overdo things, we stop appreciating them. When we see too much, we no longer give it the same importance. That’s what’s happening with football – it’s overconsumption.”
The inaugural 32-team Club World Cup added 63 matches to the summer schedule, prompting criticism from players and clubs over fatigue and injury risks.
Kounde urged football’s governing bodies to reflect on the long-term sustainability of the current model.
“These are things we need to put into perspective,” he said. “And I think they need to change.”
Head-to-head
This is the 13th meeting between the countries with France winning on six occasions while Ukraine have won only once.
What happened in the last Ukraine-France match?
The sides last met in a World Cup qualifier in September 2021 in Kyiv with the match ending in a 1-1 draw.
Mykola Shaparenko gave the home side the lead but Anthony Martial levelled for the French.
The reverse fixture in the group also ended in a 1-1 draw in Paris.
Ukraine team news
Real Madrid goalkeeper Andriy Lunin misses out due to injury so Anatoliy Trubin starts in goal.
Defender Oleksandr Tymchyk is a late withdrawal from the squad due to a knock.
France team news
Defender Saliba sustained a muscle injury in Arsenal’s defeat at Liverpool on Sunday.
Manchester City’s Cherki has also been forced to withdraw due to a knock with Eintract Frankfurt’s Hugo Ekitike taking his place.
Dembele is expected to shake off his thigh problem.
Ukraine possible starting lineup
Trubin; Konoplya, Zabarnyi, Matviienko, Mykolenko; Kaliuzhny, Zinchenko; Tsygankov, Shaparenko, Sudakov; Dovbyk
France possible starting lineup
Maignan; Kounde, Upamecano, Konate, T Hernandez; Tchouameni, Rabiot; Olise, Dembele, Thuram; Mbappe
The post Ukraine vs France: World Cup qualifiers – teams, start, lineups appeared first on Al Jazeera.
