North Macedonia vs Belgium

National Arena Toshe Proeski is the venue as North Macedonia and Belgium go head-to-head in an exciting 2026 World Cup qualifier.

Seeking their first-ever World Cup qualification as an independent country, North Macedonia enjoyed a strong start to their Group J campaign in March. They followed up on a 3-0 rout of minnows Liechtenstein with a 1-1 draw with Wales to seize the top spot in this section pre-round. It’s been almost a year since Blagoja Milevski’s side last lost an international (W6, D2), with each win in that stretch seeing them keep a clean sheet. However, this task is nothing short of Herculean as they meet Belgium – a side they’ve lost to in both previous home H2Hs without finding the net. On the bright side, the Lynxes haven’t lost a home fixture since June 2023 (W4, D3), including a pair of inspiring draws against continental heavyweights England and Italy. 

In the meantime, Belgium claimed a dramatic 4-3 aggregate win against Ukraine in March to protect their League A status in the UEFA Nations League. Therefore, Rudi Garcia’s men will kick their World Cup qualifying journey off only now, looking to maintain an incredible 28-game unbeaten run in World Cup qualifiers (W23, D5). That streak dates back to October 2009, testifying to Belgium’s status as the continent’s superpower. Furthermore, they’ve topped their group in the last three World Cup qualifying cycles. Delivering action from the get-go, they’ve scored before the halftime interval in their past three World Cup away qualifiers, highlighting the potential for a quick-fire start.