Czechs name veteran coach Koubek for World Cup play-offs

The Czech Football Association said Friday it had appointed Miroslav Koubek as national coach for next two and and a half years, giving him time to prepare for the 2026 World Cup 2026 play-offs in March.

The 74-year-old Koubek will replace Ivan Hasek, who led the Czechs in World Cup qualifiers and was sacked following a humiliating 2-1 defeat at the Faroe Islands in October.

The Czechs finished second in Group L, six points behind Croatia, and booked a place in the play-offs against Ireland in Prague on March 26.

“We will do everything to clinch a World Cup spot,” Koubek told reporters.

“This is my task and I have to cope with it. I call it heads or tails… but I’m optimistic and believe that we’ll make it,” he added.

If the Czechs beat Ireland, they will face either Denmark or North Macedonia in the play-off decider in Prague on March 31.

The winner of that play-off leg will face co-hosts Mexico, South Africa and South Korea in Group A of the World Cup in June and July next year.

The 74-year-old Koubek, a former goalkeeper, has mostly coached Czech top-flight clubs.

His last stint with Viktoria Plzen ended in September, following a streak of poor results.

Before that, he led Viktoria to the Conference League quarter-finals in 2024 and the Europa League last-16 phase this year.

Pavel Nedved, the former Lazio and Juventus midfielder who is the national team’s general manager, said Koubek has been his first choice.

“He was really successful in European cups in the past two years,” said Nedved,

“I have a very clear idea about the national team coach and Koubek meets all criteria,” he added.

The Czech Republic have played at all Euro tournaments since the country became independent in 1993, but they only qualified for a single World Cup, in 2006, when they bowed out in the group stage.