SUNDAY 15 November
Hungary v Republic of Ireland, Puskás Arena, 2pm
TV
Live coverage on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player from 1pm
RADIO
Live commentary on RTÉ Radio 1
ONLINE
Live blog on RTÉ.ie/Sport and the RTÉ News app
It's up for grabs now
The pessimists might have assumed that Ireland's chances of a realistic shot at qualification had gone when Arayik Eloyan butchered a glorious opportunity at the death for Armenia in Yerevan.
But then from the depths of purgatory, Heimir Hallgrimsson's gazelles overwhelmed a sluggish Portugal side in Lansdowne Road, the biggest result at the old venue since October 2015.
It means that for the first time since the Euro 2020 qualifiers, Ireland will head to the final game of a campaign with their qualification hopes still intact. The stakes were lower on that occasion given that Ireland already had the safety net for a spot in a four-way play-off, for reasons that were rather opaque to people at the time.
Tomorrow, there is no such guarantee and a four-way play-off is the only prize on offer. FIFA's expansion of the World Cup to encompass half the globe has seemingly only made it easier for the likes of Suriname and Curacao (both still have their fate in their hands, you'll be pleased to know) to qualify. It remains as much of a grind as it ever was to come through Europe.
RTÉ2 have hastily re-arranged their schedule, announcing that the coverage, which was to commence at 1.30pm, will now begin at 1pm. Anyone who wished to watch 'My Boss's Wedding' starring Holly Deveaux and written by Patrick McBrearty (presumably a different one) will be catered for at a later date.
There is no convoluted formula here. Ireland know they need to win to keep their hopes alive. Reaching a simple play-off in this manner would be so thrilling, it's hard to believe that the World Cup proper could even live up to it.
The Hungarians could be forgiven for being a tad spooked by the realisation that they weren't guaranteed a play-off spot heading into Sunday's game.
Theoretically, Ireland's win means that the hosts still have a shot at top spot and automatic qualification but given that Portugal only have to beat Armenia at home, this isn't considered a tenable notion.
It could make for a jittery evening for a Hungary side who have been Euros regulars over the past decade but who remarkably haven't been at a World Cup since 1986. Home and away losses to Albania did for them in the 2022 campaign while they were a very distant third in their group for 2018.
The scenario bears a strong resemblance to Cardiff 2017, when a confident Wales team chasing a first World Cup appearance since John Charles' heyday were undone by a cynical Ireland side, James McClean pinging home the winner after half-time.
War of words
Heimir Hallgrimsson's original mission of getting more b******s in the Irish team has been deemed an unqualified success by the Hungarians, with Rapid Vienna midfielder Bendeguz Bolla accusing the visitors of "provoking their opponents".
Ireland have played against 10 men for the final half hour of all three of their home games, a trend which was kick-started in September's game against Hungary when Roland Sallai was sent off after 52 minutes with the hosts trailing 2-1.
"We can never afford to retaliate or make mistakes, like in the first match when we played with a numerical disadvantage," Bolla said.
Hungary's Italian manager Marco Rossi expounded on the same theme, re-airing his grievances from the match in Dublin and hitting an an old reliable by labelling Ireland a classic British team.
"The Irish, like all the British players, they do their job on the pitch, it will be not a question for us, we will only be focused on what we have to do, be aggressive as well, going into the crashes, the duels and tackles, with no fear."
On Ireland's victory on Thursday, the most Rossi would say was that they had "a clear tactical plan that worked really well against Portugal. I think that plan was based essentially on the characteristics of the players."
To stick or not to stick
Evan Ferguson, included in the initial 26-man squad despite Roma flatly insisting he was injured, hasn't recovered in time with Heimir Hallgrimsson confirming that he "hasn't kicked a ball" in training over the past week.
"Everyone is fit apart from him [Evan Ferguson]," said Hallgrimsson. "We called him yesterday or he did a session yesterday, and he hasn't kicked the ball still.
"We talked to him and he feels that he would not be able to contribute much.
"I give a big-up to him, thinking about the team first. Obviously, every player would like to come, especially after the game in Dublin and join, but he thinks he would not contribute enough to be in the squad.
"So we leave him out and he just continues with Roma, with his rehabilitation."
Heimir Hallgrímsson admits Evan Ferguson still hasn't kicked a ball and says he’s 'tempted’ to stick with the same XI that stunned Portugal 2-0 on Thursday.
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) November 15, 2025
📺 Watch Hungary v Republic of Ireland in World Cup qualifying on Sunday from 1.00pm on @rte2 and @rteplayer pic.twitter.com/zLjtc0ncEu
Despite Ferguson's decent goal-scoring record at international level, the angst isn't the same as it might have been in the wake of Troy Parrott's ebuillent form in Dublin.
The manager has in the past drawn attention to Ireland's habit of under-performing in the second game of an international window, though he stressed he was "tempted" to start with the same team that played on Thursday night.
Ryan Manning, suspended after picking up a booking for time-wasting in Lisbon, is back available though it remains to be seen whether he'll replace Liam Scales, who shifted over to left back for the victory over Portugal.
History corner
Competitive fixtures between Hungary and Ireland have been relatively thin on the ground over the decades.
They caught us at a particularly bad time in the 1970 World Cup qualification campaign, Ireland slap bang in the middle of a four and a half year winless streak (and people thought the current era was bad).
Ireland were beaten 2-1 in Dalyer in June 1969 and then spanked 4-0 away from home the following November, still their last defeat to Hungary in any fixture, competitive or otherwise.
John Giles, as was frequently the case during this period, missed both games, with Eamonn Dunphy taking his place in midfield. Dunphy, who apologised to "The Dentist" on Friday, rarely misses an opportunity to scapegoat himself for this barren period.
Ireland's last game of proper consequence in Budapest was a goalless draw in April 1989, just before Big Jack's side embarked on the summer run a home wins that would propel them to a first ever World Cup, and with some ease as well.
Hungarian society probably had bigger things on its mind in 1989 and their football team were about to enter a precipitous decline in the early 1990s, right at the moment when Ireland were heading in the opposite direction.
Ireland had their sole competitive victory over the Hungarians the following June, a famous 2-0 victory in a game which - if one is minded to seek out good omens - was also played on a Sunday afternoon (due to a lack of floodlights rather than a crammed schedule).
It's only been friendlies since then, at least until this campaign. Ireland won 2-1 in front of 5,000 people in Hungary in September '91, David Kelly and Kevin Sheedy with the goals.
There was a 0-0 draw in torrential rain in a pre-Euro 2012 friendly. There was a considerably more entertaining goalless draw in a pre-Euro 2020(1) friendly in Budapest - played at the smaller Szusza Ferenc Stadion - in which Caoimhin Kelleher made his international debut, replacing Gavin Bazunu at half-time.
The pair played their most recent friendly in June 2024, the Hungarians largely dominating the ball and passing up numerous chances before Troy Parrott won it for John O'Shea's side with a skittery injury-time finish.
Watch Hungary v Republic of Ireland in World Cup qualifying on Sunday from 1.00pm on RTÉ2 and the RTÉ Player. Follow a live blog on the RTÉ News App and on rte.ie/sport. Listen to live commentary on RTÉ Radio 1.
