The Ireland WNT’s path to a first-ever European Championship next year has become clear following Friday’s draw at Uefa headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland.
First up for Ireland is a reunion with Georgia, ranked 119 in the world. Ireland will be fancied to advance from the tie, having racked up 9-0 and 11-0 victories against the Georgians during their trail to last years World Cup.
Eileen Gleeson's team will travel for the first leg on Friday October 25th before welcoming their opponents to Irish soil for the return leg the following Tuesday.
Speaking following this mornings draw, Gleeson was in good spirits after their impressive defeat of France Tuesday evening:
We will take confidence from our win over France in Cork but also from each of our six performances in the group stage. It is important that we improve with each game if we are to compete at the top level of women's football. And we will be ready for these play-offs.
Ahead of tomorrow's @WEURO2025 Play-Off Draw at 12pm, let's revisit that win over France 😁#COYGIG pic.twitter.com/9YIj11BHFY
— Ireland Football ⚽️🇮🇪 (@IrelandFootball) July 18, 2024
Despite finishing bottom of their tier A group, Ireland were already guaranteed a playoff place due to winning last year’s Nations League group. The victory against France this week ensured they'd be seeded.
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Possible progression
If Ireland progress through their semi, they will play a two-legged final against either Wales or Slovakia which would take place on Friday November 29th and Tuesday December 3rd. Crucially, Ireland would play at home in the second leg.
Ireland has recent and contrasting history with both.
Like Georgia, Slovakia were part of Ireland’s World Cup qualification group and were worthy of their 1-1 draw in Tallaght before a 1-0 victory for Ireland in Senec. Wales would also represent tricky opponents for Eileen Gleeson’s side. They came to Tallaght in February and came away with a comfortable 2-0 win.
Bring on the Play-Offs! 👊#COYGIG pic.twitter.com/0GTRJG24YJ
— Ireland Football ⚽️🇮🇪 (@IrelandFootball) July 19, 2024
Gleeson has no doubt what the teams ultimate goal is:
The target for us since last year, when we started with the UEFA Nations League, was always to qualify for Euro 2025; this is the next part of that.
Already qualified for the finals through the regulation qualifiers were holders England and France from Ireland’s group, along with Germany, Denmark, Italy, Netherlands, Iceland and Spain. They will join hosts Switzerland and the seven qualifiers from the playoffs in the December 16 draw in Lausanne.
