How to watch November's decisive World Cup qualifiers and international friendlies
It has all come down to this. Seven days. At least 15 games. Twenty teams for the final nine spots at the 2018 World Cup in Russia. The World Cup qualifying cycle has spanned almost three years, but it enters its final window with plenty still to play for.
The November international break is headlined by four European playoffs, two intercontinental playoffs, and one last round of African qualifiers to decide three groups. The six playoffs will each be decided on aggregate over two legs. Additionally, 22 of the 23 teams that have already qualified will play at least one friendly.
[More FC Yahoo: Everything you need to know about the 2018 World Cup field]
Below is the TV schedule for all of that – first the qualifiers that matter, then the friendlies that involve World Cup teams.
All times ET. All games on ESPN networks can also be found on WatchESPN. All games on Fox networks can also be found on Fox Sports Go. Most games on BeIN Sports can also be found on BeIN Sports Connect. Cable subscriptions may be required. BeIN games may also be available on mobile devices on the go90 app.
WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS
THURSDAY, NOV. 9
Northern Ireland 0-1 Switzerland — first leg
Croatia 4-1 Greece — first leg
FRIDAY, NOV. 10
South Africa 0-2 Senegal — Senegal became the 24th team to qualify for the World Cup.
Honduras 0-0 Australia — first leg
New Zealand 0-0 Peru — first leg
SATURDAY, NOV. 11
Democratic Republic of Congo 3-1 Guinea
Tunisia 0-0 Libya — Tunisia qualified with its draw, despite Congo DR’s win.
Ivory Coast 0-2 Morocco — Morocco qualified for its first World Cup since 1998.
Denmark 0-0 Ireland — first leg
SUNDAY, NOV. 12
Switzerland 0-0 Northern Ireland — Switzerland held on to its 1-0 aggregate advantage and became the 27th team to qualify.
Greece 0-0 Croatia — Croatia qualified comfortably via its 4-1 first-leg win.
MONDAY, NOV. 13
Italy v Sweden, second leg | 2:45 p.m., Fox Sports 1, Fox Deportes
TUESDAY, NOV. 14
Burkina Faso v Cape Verde | 2:30 p.m., TBD/BeIN networks
Senegal v South Africa | 2:30 p.m., TBD/BeIN networks — These games will only matter if Senegal fails to beat South Africa in their first matchup. Burkina Faso and Cape Verde need a South Africa (heavy) win and draw from the two matches between South Africa and Senegal to stay alive. The winner of their match on Tuesday could then qualify with a win and some goal differential recovery. South Africa, meanwhile, could qualify with a win over Senegal if it also wins the first match.
Ireland v Denmark, second leg | 2:45 p.m., Fox Sports 2
WEDNESDAY, NOV. 15
Australia v Honduras, second leg | 4 a.m., BeIN Sports, BeIN Sports Español, ESPN3
Peru v New Zealand, second leg | 9:15 p.m., TBD
FRIENDLIES
WEDNESDAY, NOV. 8
Iceland 1-2 Czech Republic
THURSDAY, NOV. 9
Iran 2-1 Panama
FRIDAY, NOV. 10
South Korea 2-1 Colombia
China 0-2 Serbia
Japan 1-3 Brazil
Poland 0-0 Uruguay
Belgium 3-3 Mexico
Portugal 3-0 Saudi Arabia
England 0-0 Germany
France 2-0 Wales
SATURDAY, NOV. 11
Russia 0-1 Argentina
Spain 5-0 Costa Rica
SUNDAY, NOV. 12
None.
MONDAY, NOV. 13
Venezuela v Iran | 1:45 p.m., none
Bulgaria v Saudi Arabia | 2 p.m., none
Poland v Mexico | 2:45 p.m., UniMás
TUESDAY, NOV. 14
South Korea v Serbia | 6 a.m., none
China v Colombia | 6:35 a.m., none
Argentina v Nigeria | 11:30 a.m., BeIN Sports, BeIN Español
Qatar v Iceland | 11:30 a.m., none
Austria v Uruguay | 1:45 p.m., ESPN3
Russia v Spain | 1:45 p.m., ESPN Deportes
Hungary v Costa Rica | 2:15 p.m., none
Belgium v Japan | 2:45 p.m., ESPN3
Germany v France | 2:45 p.m., ESPN2, ESPN Deportes
Wales v Panama | 2:45 p.m., none
England v Brazil | 3 p.m., Fox Deportes
Portugal v United States | 3:45 p.m., Fox Sports 1, UniMás
– – – – – – –
Henry Bushnell covers soccer – the U.S. national teams, the Premier League, and much, much more – for FC Yahoo and Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Question? Comment? Email him at henrydbushnell@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @HenryBushnell.
