Wales will play host to Bosnia-Herzegovina, while Northern Ireland will visit Italy in the semi-finals of the World Cup play-offs.
The winners of these matches will compete in the final for a spot in next year’s World Cup, with the final being held at the home ground of the victor from the Wales-Bosnia match.
The Republic of Ireland will travel to the Czech Republic, with a possible home final against Denmark or North Macedonia.
The semi-finals are scheduled for March 26, and the finals will take place on March 31. All matches will be single-leg encounters.
Sixteen teams are vying for four places in the tournament set to be held in the US, Canada, and Mexico.
During the draw in Switzerland, teams from pot one (the top seeds) were matched with teams from pot four, while teams from pot two faced those from pot three.
Teams were also assigned to paths that determined their opponents in the final and which teams would play at home.
Twelve teams entered the play-offs by finishing second in their World Cup qualifying groups, while four teams, including Northern Ireland, qualified by winning their Nations League group last year.
The draw for the World Cup, which will include England and Scotland, is scheduled for December 5 in Washington DC.
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This play-off path is filled with intriguing narratives for Wales, who have once again benefited from home advantage.
Since the introduction of this single-leg semi-final and final format, Wales has played all four of their matches at Cardiff City Stadium. By March next year, they could have played six out of six there.
First, they must secure a victory in their semi-final against Bosnia-Herzegovina, where Wales achieved qualification for Euro 2016, their first major tournament in 58 years.
If successful, they could face Italy in the final at home, a team that lost during their last visit to Cardiff in 2002, with current Wales head coach Craig Bellamy scoring the decisive goal.
Gennaro Gattuso, now the coach of Italy, was a substitute in that 2-1 defeat at what was then known as the Millennium Stadium.
Italy, who have won the World Cup four times, are the highest-ranked team in the play-offs.
Wales faces challenging matches ahead, but they are optimistic about qualifying for their second consecutive World Cup, and only the third in their history.
Northern Ireland has faced Italy 11 times, winning only once in 1958, a victory that helped them qualify for that summer’s World Cup in Sweden.
According to FIFA rankings, this is the toughest draw Northern Ireland could have encountered.
Even if they win in Italy, they would face another away match in a potential final against either Wales or Bosnia, making the situation quite challenging for Michael O’Neill’s team.
Intercontinental Play-off Draw
The draw for the intercontinental play-offs was also conducted, which will take place in Mexico during the international break in late March.
Two of the six participating teams will qualify for the World Cup. The four lowest-ranked teams will compete in the semi-finals, while the two highest-seeded teams, DR Congo.
