Bulgaria vs Turkey Prediction for 12 October 2025 - Football

🔊 Bulgaria's national team will host Turkey in the World Cup 2026 qualifiers in Sofia. After two rounds, the hosts unsurprisingly find themselves at the bottom of Group E, while the visitors sit just above them, still vying with Georgia for the second spot. Spain, occupying the top position, are unlikely to be dislodged. What is the prediction for the match at Vasil Levski Stadium?

Head-to-Head

📊 The teams have not faced each other in official matches before.

Bulgaria Team Overview

⚪ The Bulgarians unsurprisingly find themselves as the underdogs in Group E. In September, they suffered a home defeat to Spain (0-3) and then lost with the same scoreline (0-3) to Georgia in Tbilisi. These setbacks led to the dismissal of head coach Ilian Iliev. He has been replaced by Aleksandar Dimitrov, who spent seven years working with Bulgaria's U21 national team.

🟢 Naturally, Dimitrov won't be able to transform the team completely in the remaining four matches, but in their home game against Turkey, the Bulgarians might put up a fight. A few days later, they face a daunting away challenge in Spain.

Turkey Team Overview

🔴 Turkey last appeared on the World Cup stage in 2002, where they secured a third-place finish. Vincenzo Montella has already guided the team to Euro 2024 in Germany and now aims to bring the Turks back to the world's premier football tournament after 24 years.

⚪ Turkey's start to the qualifiers has been mixed: they managed a hard-fought victory over Georgia (3-2) in the opener, but were then thrashed by Spain (0-6) in the second match. The Turkish players are determined to bounce back in Sofia and then host Georgia in Kocaeli. Two potential wins in the October fixtures would bolster Montella's team's position and significantly reduce Georgia's and Bulgaria's chances of competing for second place.

Latest news

Bulgaria

🎙️ Alexander Dimitrov has made it clear that he intends to tighten discipline within the team. To achieve this, he has prepared an internal code of conduct, with sanctions for violations proposed and approved by the players themselves: "The first rule is purely human – the team must foster friendly relations, discipline, loyalty, and prudence. All rules will be discussed with the players, and they will propose the sanctions themselves, so everyone can take responsibility. This responsibility will be shared. Of course, phones are banned in the locker room and during meetings. I will not tolerate lateness or poor behavior."

💊 All called-up players are healthy and ready for the upcoming match.

Turkey

❌ Winger Galatasaray and Turkey national team player Barış Yılmaz will miss the match against Bulgaria due to a red card received in the game against Georgia.

🚩 Referee and Yellow Cards

🚩 Referee and Yellow Cards

The match will be officiated by Portuguese referee Luís Miguel Branco Godinho, who has averaged 4.4 yellow cards over his last ten matches. We anticipate that tempers won't flare in this encounter: the teams are on different levels, and their rivalry is more on paper than in reality. Turkey appear significantly stronger, so the match is likely to be a calm affair. Our prediction: total yellow cards under 4.5.

⚽ Goal Prediction

Despite playing at home, we doubt Bulgaria will manage to score even once. In five of their last ten official matches, the Bulgarians failed to find the net. Considering the quality of the opposition, our prediction: Bulgaria will not score.

🚩 Corner Prediction

The Bulgarians have only taken two corners in their first two matches—one in each game. Meanwhile, Turkey earned two corners against Georgia and six against Spain. Here, we favor the bet total corners under 9.5, which has come through in nine consecutive home games for Bulgaria.

Undoubtedly, the hosts aim to secure points on their home turf, but they fully understand that a World Cup berth is out of their reach. Turkey, on the other hand, boasts a much stronger lineup with players from Europe's top clubs and is determined to reclaim their place among the elite of world football.

Montella's side cannot afford to drop points against such an opponent, whether at home or away. They face tougher challenges ahead, so it's crucial to capitalize now. Our prediction: Turkey to win with a -1.5 handicap. Likely scoreline – 3-0.