Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal
Portugal or Italy miss 2022 World Cup, as Euro playoff draws out
European playoff draw for the 2022 World Cup made last night has pitched Portugal against, meaning only one of either countries will not be in Qatar for the football tournament.
The two football giants were drawn together in the second phase of the draw.
Italy will take on North Macedonia initially, with Portugal facing Turkey, and should both the seeded nations emerge unscathed from those ties, they will then face off for a place at the 2022 World Cup.
That means, the 2022 World Cup will be without the Euro 2020 winners, or Cristiano Ronaldo.
Elsewhere in the draw, the next quartet sets up an eye-catching Eastern European clash a s Russia play Poland, with the winner then coming up against either Sweden or the Czech Republic.
In the final section, there will be another local rivalry as British neighbours Scotland and Wales could come together in the final, if they can overcome Ukraine and Austria respectively.
The result of the draw means that one of the last two winners of the European Championship will not be at the 2022 World Cup.
It also means that there are strong chances for the likes of Scotland and Austria, who were not present at the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
All eyes will also be on some of the major talents, such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Marco Verratti, Robert Lewandowski, Gareth Bale, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, or David Alaba who could miss out on the tournament.
With only three of the 12 sides set to progress, heartbreak is assured for some of the biggest names in football.
