Ukraine’s quest to reach the World Cup will require breaking another home crowd’s hearts with a visit to Cardiff City Stadium on Sunday to tangle with Wales in a UEFA World Cup qualifying playoff final.
The Noon ET kickoff sees Ukraine coming off a decisive win over Scotland in Glasgow, so to beat Wales in Cardiff would be two impressive wins for a national team that spent six months idle due to the Russian invasion of their nation.
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Wales enters the final ranked No. 18 in the FIFA Rankings, nine spots higher than Ukraine. The more equitable Elo Ratings have Ukraine 17th, marginally ahead of 23rd-ranked Wales, and that seems a better system.
The Welsh haven’t lost at home since a 2-1 Nations League setback to Denmark in 2018, but they also haven’t played a super-strong slate of opponents in Wales and there are a lot of draws in the bunch.
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Ukraine hasn’t lost since EURO 2020 this summer, a 4-0 quarterfinal exit to England, but there have been a lot of 1-1 draws in the bunch.
But the result that matters most was the 3-1 win over Scotland. If that doesn’t serve enough notice for Wales to beware the visitors and the extra emotion in their camp, it’ll definitely be Ukraine joining the United States, England, and Iran in a tasty World Cup group.
How to watch Wales vs Ukraine live, stream link and start time
Kick off: Noon ET (Sunday, June 5)
TV channel/streaming: ESPN+
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