Azerbaijan – Ukraine: announcement and prediction of the 2026 World Cup qualifying match

On Tuesday, September 9, the Ukrainian national team will play its second match in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers. The “blue and yellow” team will face the Azerbaijani team. The match will take place in Baku at the Tofik Bahramov Republican Stadium and will start at 19:00 Kyiv time.

The Ukrainian national team started the qualifying campaign with a defeat to France (0:2). Despite the result, Serhiy Rebrov’s team created dangerous moments, but were unable to convert their chances. Now the team’s main task is to score the first points in Group D.

Azerbaijan also had a poor start to the qualifiers. In the opening round, the team lost to Iceland with a crushing score of 0:5. The Azerbaijanis were still holding on in the first half, but after the break, the Vikings completely dominated the field.

The history of face-to-face meetings between the national teams includes only two friendly matches in 2006. One ended in a goalless draw, and in the other, Ukraine won 6:0.

Match prediction

Bookmakers consider the Ukrainian national team to be the undisputed favorite. The odds for a victory for the “blue and yellow” range from 1.54 to 1.62. They give 4.1–4.2 for a draw, while the odds for a victory for Azerbaijan are over 5.5–6.1.

As a reminder, the group winners will directly qualify for the 2026 World Cup finals, which will be held in the United States, Mexico, and Canada. The runners-up will compete for playoff berths.

Team lineups

Ukraine national team:

• Goalkeepers – Heorhiy Bushchan (Polissya Zhytomyr), Anatoliy Trubin (Benfica Lisbon, Portugal), Dmytro Riznyk (Shakhtar Donetsk).
• Defenders – Ilya Zabarny (“Paris Saint-Germain”, Paris, France), Oleksandr Svatok (“Austin”, USA), Valeriy Bondar, Mykola Matvienko, Yefim Konoplya (all – “Shakhtar” Donetsk), Taras Mykhavko, Vladyslav Dubinchak (both – “Dynamo” Kyiv), Bohdan Mykhailichenko (“Polissya” Zhytomyr).
• Midfielders – Oleksandr Zinchenko (“Nottingham Forest”, England), Yehor Yarmolyuk (“Brentford”, England), Ivan Kalyuzhny (“Metalist 1925” Kharkiv), Mykola Shaparenko, Nazar Voloshyn (both – “Dynamo” Kyiv), Oleg Ocheretko, Artem Bondarenko (both – “Shakhtar” Donetsk), Oleksiy Hutsulyak, Oleksandr Nazarenko (both – “Polissya” Zhytomyr), Georgy Sudakov (“Benfica” Lisbon, Portugal), Oleksandr Zubkov (“Trabzonspor” Trabzon, Turkey).
• Forwards – Artem Dovbyk (“Roma”, Rome, Italy), Vladyslav Vanat (“Girona”, Spain).

Azerbaijan national team:

• Goalkeepers: Shahruddin Magomedaliev (“Qarabag”), Rza Jafarov (“Neftchi”), Aydin Bayramov (“Zira”).
• Defenders: Jalal Huseynov (“Arda Kirdzhali”, Bulgaria), Anton Krivotsyuk (“Taejong Hana Citizen”, Korea), Elvin Jafarguliev, Bahlul Mustafazade, Abbas Huseynov (all – “Qarabag”), Rahman Dashdamirov (“Sabah”), Elvin Badalov (“Neftchi”).
• Midfielders: Ozan Kekchu (“Volendam”, Netherlands), Sabukhi Abdullazade (“Sumgayit”), Anatoly Nuriev, Khayal Aliyev (both – “Sabah”), Emin Mahmudov (“Neftchi”), Shahin Shakhriyarov (“Gabala”), Kismet Aliyev, Jeyhun Nuriev, Ismail Ibrahimli (all – “Zira”), Toral Bayramov, Nariman Akhundzade (both – “Qarabag”).
• Forwards: Renat Dadashov (“Motor Lublin”, Poland), Mahir Emreli (“Kaiserslautern”, Germany), Musa Gurbanli (“Qarabag”).

The game will be officiated by a Greek refereeing team led by Vasilios Fotis. He will be assisted by Andreas Mentanas and Michael Papadakis, with Anastasios Papapetrou as the fourth official. The VAR system will be monitored by Angelos Evangelou and Ioannis Papadopoulos.

Group D selection and match schedule

Group D includes: France, Ukraine, Iceland, Azerbaijan.

Group D match calendar (Kyiv time):

• Round 1 – 05.09.2025:
  • Ukraine — France 21:45, Wroclaw;
  • Iceland – Azerbaijan 21:45, Reykjavik.
• Round 2 – 09.09.2025:
  • Azerbaijan — Ukraine 19:00, Baku;
  • France — Iceland 9:45 p.m., Paris.
• Round 3 – 10.10.2025:
  • Iceland — Ukraine 21:45, Reykjavik;
  • France — Azerbaijan 21:45, Paris.
• Round 4 – 10/13/2025:
  • Ukraine — Azerbaijan 21:45;
  • Iceland – France 21:45, Reykjavik.
• Round 5 – 11/13/2025:
  • Azerbaijan — Iceland 19:00, Baku;
  • France — Ukraine 21:45, Paris.
• Round 6 – 11/16/2025:
  • Ukraine — Iceland 19:00;
  • Azerbaijan — France 19:00, Baku.

Earlier, after a 0:2 defeat to France in the opening match of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, head coach of the Ukrainian national team Serhiy Rebrov said that the team needs to better complete its attacks and capitalize on its opportunities .

By the way, the head coach of the Ukrainian national team, Serhiy Rebrov, said that football fans have an important autumn ahead .

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