World Cup draw simulated as England land nightmare clash against rivals Germany in repeat of Euro 2020 last 16

ENGLAND were handed a nightmare World Cup 2022 group stage draw after being pitted against Germany... but thankfully it was just a simulation.

However, a clash against their old rivals is a very real possibility in this week's official draw on April 1.

Gareth Southgate's side have been confirmed as among the top seeds for the global tournament which starts on November 21 and runs until December 18.

They will be in Pot 1 alongside hosts Qatar and winners of the last World Cup, France, along with Belgium, Spain, Brazil, Argentina and Portugal, should the Euro 2016 winners beat North Macedonia in their play-off final.

But England failed to avoid one of the big boys as they were drawn against Germany in a SunSport simulation.

England have plenty of history against Germany in the World Cup having beaten them in the 1966 final to win their first and only major tournament.

However England were knocked out of the World Cup by Germany in the quarter-finals in 1970, the semi-finals in 1990 and the last-16 in 2010.

Though England did beat Germany in their last encounter in their Euro 2020 last-16 clash.

And the two countries have even been drawn in the same Nations League group alongside Italy.

England's World Cup 2022 group also includes Peru and Nigeria, who are both still yet to officially qualify.

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Nigeria must beat Ghana in their World Cup qualifier, while Peru have to beat Paraguay on Tuesday where they will then face a country from the Asian Confederation in a play-off.

Only 19 nations have qualified for the tournament so far, including tournament hosts Qatar.

The European countries currently in the pot are England, Germany, France, Spain, Belgium, Netherlands, Switzerland, Serbia, Croatia and Denmark.

Brazil, Argentina, Ecuador and Uruguay make up the South American contingent, along with Asian countries South Korea, Japan, Saudi Arabia and Iran.