Bulgaria vs Spain 0-3: UEFA World Cup qualifying – as it happened

There are six groups of four, which are only now beginning their World Cup qualifying campaigns.

There are a further six groups of five teams, which have already completed four qualifying matches to this stage.

The top teams from each of the groups qualify directly for next summer’s World Cup, while the second-placed teams enter playoffs in order to progress.

Two teams are eliminated from the reduced four-team groups, while three teams are eliminated from the already under way five-team groups.

You can also let us know who you think may score first for Ukraine or France:

The live coverage of Bulgaria vs Spain in the UEFA qualifiers for the FIFA 2026 World Cup has ended.

Thank you for tuning in, and we hope you had fun.

We will be back on Friday for more live action. Until then, it’s goodbye from me, Manasi Pathak, on behalf of Al Jazeera Sport.

Click here to read our report following Germany’s defeat by Slovakia to open their World Cup qualifying campaign.

Our focus now shifts to Friday’s World Cup qualifying match between former world champions France and Ukraine.

The fixture, scheduled for 19:45 GMT, will take place in Wroclaw, Poland, due to security concerns in Ukraine during the Russian military invasion.

Al Jazeera will bring you all the build-up from 16:45 GMT in advance of our live text commentary stream. You can read our match preview here.

Click here to read our match report following Spain’s win in Bulgaria, including news of Turkiye’s win in Georgia.

Bulgaria will play Georgia in Sunday’s fixture in Tbilisi, while Spain will face Turkiye in Konya.

Teams are scheduled to play only two World Cup qualifying matches in this international window in September. The next rounds are in October and November.

“We are incredibly demanding, [the players] most of all – they were disappointed with the second half,” said the Spanish coach.

“We’re happy, but we have to keep taking steps forward.

“[Turkiye] will be a higher-level game and more demanding … we have to look to be better every day.”

Daniel Levy has stepped down as Tottenham chairman, the club announced earlier on Thursday, bringing to an end the nearly 25-year tenure of a divisive figure known for keeping the Premier League team profitable but unable to turn it into a trophy-winning force.

The 63-year-old Levy, who was the longest-serving chairman in the English top flight, said he has left his role with Tottenham now a “global heavyweight competing at the highest level”.

“It hasn’t always been an easy journey,” Levy said, “but significant progress has been made. I will continue to support this club passionately.”

Read the full story here.

Spain opened their World Cup qualifying campaign with a comfortable 3-0 win away to Bulgaria in their Group E meeting on Thursday, with goals from Mikel Oyarzabal, Marc Cucurella and Mikel Merino all coming in the opening half.

Oyarzabal gave Spain the perfect start in Sofia with a goal in the fifth minute, and the visitors doubled their lead on the half-hour mark when Cucurella thumped home his first international goal.

Spain made it 3-0 eight minutes later through a Merino header as Luis de la Fuente’s side threatened to run riot, but despite controlling the game, they were unable to add to their tally after the break.

Up next for Spain is another away game, a trip to Turkiye on Sunday, while Bulgaria travel to face Georgia the same day. Turkiye won 3-2 away to Georgia earlier on Thursday in the other Group E match.

• Luxembourg 1-3 Northern Ireland (Group A)
• Slovakia 2-0 Germany (Group A)
• Netherlands 1-1 Poland (Group G)
• Liechtenstein 0-6 Belgium (Group J)

The 3-0 win in Sofia has guided Spain to first place in Group E of the UEFA qualifiers for next year’s FIFA World Cup.

Turkiye, who beat Georgia 3-2 earlier on Thursday, sit second on goal difference.

Georgia are third, while Bulgaria are bottom, with both having no points after the first round of fixtures.

Spain register a comfortable 3-0 win over Bulgaria in their first Group E match of the UEFA qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

A solid first-half performance, featuring goals from Oyarzabal, Cucurella and Merino, earned the European champions three points in Sofia.

Final minutes of action in Sofia in this World Cup qualifier.

90 mins: Bulgaria 0-3 Spain

Rodri lobs the ball over the Bulgarian defence, hoping to find youngster Rodriguez up top, but the goalkeeper gets to the ball first.

83 mins: Bulgaria 0-3 Spain