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A stunning bicycle kick and two stoppage-time goals sealed Scotland’s dramatic return to the World Cup after a 28-year wait. Austria needed a late equalizer to also make it back to soccer’s showcase event for the first time since 1998, while top-ranked Spain clinched its spot after equaling Italy’s 31-match unbeaten record in competitive games in Europe.

Belgium and Switzerland also secured their places for the 2026 World Cup as European qualifying finished Tuesday. Five automatic spots were still available in Europe. Scotland beat 10-man Denmark 4-2 in a winner-take-all match in Group C, with Scott McTominay scoring a superb bicycle kick goal three minutes into the match, sending the Hampden Park crowd into raptures.

A draw would have given Denmark the group win and the Danes were in good position after Patrick Dorgu equalized in the 82nd, but Kieran Tierney put the hosts ahead again three minutes into added time. Kenny McLean then sealed Scotland’s qualification eight minutes into stoppage time when he chipped goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel from the halfway line.

“We’ve been on a journey. I spoke to them about it pre-match, about how this is the opportunity we’ve waited for. What a night, eh?” Scotland coach Steve Clarke said. “This was the chance, one game. This was like a playoff final. We put everything on the line. There’s always one last step and it’s always the hardest.”

Denmark, which saw Rasmus Kristensen sent off in the 62nd, finished second in the group, two points behind Scotland. A 1-1 home draw against Bosnia and Herzegovina was enough for Austria to win Group H and return to the World Cup after a 28-year wait, while Belgium routed Liechtenstein 7-0. Switzerland qualified after a 1-1 draw at Kosovo.

The 12 group winners qualified directly, while the runners-up will participate in playoffs along with the four best-ranked group winners of the 2024-25 Nations League that did not finish first or second in their groups. The playoffs will be played on March 26 and March 31. The World Cup will be played in the United States, Mexico and Canada from June 11-July 19.

Sudurpashchim Royals clinched a 29-run victory over Kathmandu Gorkhas in the fourth match of the Nepal Premier League (NPL) at the Tribhuvan University International Cricket Ground in Kirtipur on Wednesday.

Batting first after Kathmandu elected to field, Sudurpashchim were bowled out for 147 runs in 20 overs. The innings got off to a shaky start with three wickets falling for just four runs. Captain Dipendra Singh Airee steadied the innings with 39 off 30 balls, while Harmeet Singh produced a blistering 53 from 20 deliveries, including six sixes, to lift the total.

Kathmandu’s skipper Karan KC led the bowling attack with four wickets for 30 runs. Rashid Khan and Milind Kumar picked up two wickets each.

In reply, Kathmandu managed only 118 runs in 16.5 overs. Despite a solid start from opener Aakash Tripathi, who scored 34 off 30 balls, the team struggled to build partnerships. John Simpson contributed 24, but regular wickets derailed the chase.

Sudurpashchim’s bowlers delivered a disciplined performance, with Harmeet Singh, Scott Kuggeleijn and Hemant Dhami taking two wickets each. Kathmandu collapsed from 96-5 to 118 all out, falling short of the target by 29 runs.

The Nepal Premier League continues on Thursday with Chitwan Rhinos set to face Lumbini Lions in Kirtipur.

The Kathmandu Gorkhas and the previous runner-up Sudurpashchim Royals are facing off against each other in a match under the ongoing Nepal Premier League (NPL) today.

While Kathmandu seek a second win, Sudurpaschim aim to make a victorious start of its first match of the second edition of NPL.

Kathmandu Gorkhas defeated the defending champions Janakpur Bolts in the opening match on Monday.

Karan KC  is the captain of Kathmandu Gurkhas and his team includes Bhim Sarki, Mohammad Adil Alam, Shahab Alam, Ben Charlesworth, Gerhard Erasmus, Dipesh Kandel, Milind Kumar, Rashid Khan, Uttam Thapa Magar (wicketkeeper), Sunny Patel, John Simpson (wicketkeeper), Pratik Shrestha, Akash Tripathi, Tul Bahadur Thapa, Ricardo Vasconcelos (wicketkeeper), Santosh Yadav and Sonu Devkota.

The captain of Sudurpaschim Royals is Deependra Singh Airee, who has also served as the vice-captain of the Nepal national team. 

The team under his leadership includes Vinod Bhandari (wicketkeeper), Avinash Bohara, Deepak Bohara (wicketkeeper), Milan Bohara, Josh Brown, Hemant Dhami, Scott Kugellin, Chris Lynn, Ishan Pande, Tek Rawat (wicketkeeper), Naren Saud, Harmit Singh, Arif Sheikh, Deependra Thapa (wicketkeeper) and Himmat Mahara.

Monty Desai, former coach of the Nepal national team, is in charge of Kathmandu's coaching, while Jagat Tamata is the coach of Sudurpaschim.

Eight teams are participating in the tournament organized by the Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) which started on November 17.

Fifa is set to launch a formal investigation into the internal operations of the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM), after the global football body suspended seven naturalised players of the national team over the alleged use of doctored documents, Reuters reported.

The players were banned for 12 months, after Fifa found that false documentation had been used so they could play in a 4-0 win over Vietnam in the third round of the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers in June.

Fifa said: “This investigation shall aim to identify the individuals responsible for the falsification of documents, assess the adequacy and effectiveness of FAM’s internal compliance and governance mechanisms, and determine whether additional disciplinary measures are warranted against FAM officials.”