Türkiye’s path to the 2026 World Cup will go through the playoffs, but Vincenzo Montella’s side enters the next stage with renewed belief after holding European champion Spain to a 2-2 draw on the night of Nov. 18.
Spain, which had already all but secured its place in the tournament in the United States, Mexico and Canada, finished atop the group with 16 points. Türkiye secured second place with 13 points and will join the playoff bracket in March to fight for one of Europe’s remaining tickets.
Türkiye will be a seeded team in Nov. 20’s playoff draw, which will feature 12 group runners-up and four teams from the Nations League.
Sweden, Romania, Northern Ireland and Northern Macedonia are Türkiye’s potential opponents in the playoff semifinals.
The playoffs will take place during the international window in March 2026.
“We wanted to show our true face against the best team in the world, and we did that,” said Türkiye midfielder Salih Özcan, whose second-half strike temporarily gave the visitors a shock lead. “Now we take this confidence into the playoffs.”
In a spirited finale to Group E qualifying, Türkiye became the first team to take points from Spain in this campaign.
The night began ominously for Türkiye when Dani Olmo put Spain ahead in the 4th minute, finishing a sharp move orchestrated by Marc Cucurella to slice through the visiting defense.
But unlike their previous meeting, a 6-0 thrashing by Spain in September, Türkiye did not crumble.
Just before halftime, 20-year-old forward Deniz Gül silenced the Seville crowd, capitalizing on a loose ball from a corner kick to poke home the equalizer in the 42nd minute. It was the first goal Spain had conceded in the entire qualifying cycle.
Türkiye then stunned the hosts after the break. In the 54th minute, Özcan rifled a shot from the edge of the penalty area past goalkeeper Unai Simon to make it 2-1.
Spain, looking to protect an unbeaten run in competitive home matches that dates back decades, responded quickly. Substitute Mikel Oyarzabal leveled the score in the 62nd minute, tapping in a rebound after Turkish defender Merih Demiral had made a goal-line block.
Despite late pressure from the Spaniards, goalkeeper Altay Bayındır produced two crucial saves to preserve the point for Türkiye.
“It is a bittersweet feeling because we always want to win, but we achieved our main goal of qualification,” Spain midfielder Olmo said. “Türkiye played a brave game. They made it difficult for us.”
For Türkiye, the result serves as a vital morale booster. After the demoralizing loss in Konya earlier in the group stage, Montella had urged his squad to “play with pride” and prove they could compete with Europe's elite.
“Now, we need to reset and continue our work with the utmost focus in March, when we will all work together to achieve a great dream,” the Italian coach said.
“There are two finals in the playoffs, and we must first get through the first one to play both. We will take it one step at a time, steadily moving toward our goal and be at the World Cup.”
