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FIFA world cup qualifying is an event in itself. It determines the 31 teams who qualify-along with the hosts-for the most prestigious sporting event in the world. It is interesting to note that participating teams in the first two FIFA world cup (WC) events were invited. After 1934, FIFA implemented qualifying tournaments for the quadrennial event, owing to the increasing profile and competitiveness of the World Cup.
Qualifying formats are generally stable but can change from time to time. For the 2010 FIFA WC in South Africa, 31 teams over six confederations participated in qualifying. The majority of FIFA's 207 member associations participate in the process (although teams can be absent because of bans or other reasons). Qualifying generally takes place within confederations, but there are intercontinental play-offs and intro-continental playoffs (Europe) to fill remaining spots. For the 2010 WC, FIFA allocated spots to its confederations, based on size and football strength, as follows:
CAF (Africa) - 5 places
UEFA (Europe) - 13 places
AFC (Asia) - 4.5 places
CONCACAF (North, Central America and the Caribbean) - 3.5 places
CONMEBOL (South America): 4.5 places
OFC (Oceania) - 0.5
*.5 indicates an intercontinental playoff spot
== UEFA ==
The European Confederation has 53 member associations. For 2010 qualifying, all 53 members participated. UEFA seeds teams according to strength and draws them into nine groups; eight teams have six teams each, while the ninth group has five teams. There is an equitable distribution of weak and strong teams among the groups.
A round robin, home-and-away format determines the winners and group runner-ups in each group. The winners earn an automatic berth in the World Cup finals. UEFA determines the four remaining places via four home-and-away playoffs involving the eight best runners-up from the nine groups. Since the ninth group has five teams, UEFA removes results against the last-place teams in the first eight groups to compare like with like. Playoff fixtures are the result of a draw.
== CAF ==
CAF has 53 member associations, all of which normally participate in World Cup Qualifying. In Round 1 of CAF qualifying, the ten lowest ranking nations (according to FIFA rankings) in this zone are drawn and paired into five home-and-away playoffs. The winners of each playoff advance to Round 2.
In Round 2, the CAF seeds and draws 48 eligible teams into twelve 4-team groups that play a round-robin, home-and away format. The 12 group winners and eight best runners-up advance to the third round. Round 3 involves five groups of four teams each. The teams in each group play on a home-and-away, round-robin basis. The group winners qualify for the FIFA World Cup Finals. In the event of a tie for the top spot on all tiebreakers, the two teams participate in a one-off playoff. This occurs in a neutral African country (like Algeria playing Egypt in Sudan for 2010 qualifying).
== AFC ==
Asian qualifying involves five stages. In the first stage, the top five teams in the AFC receive a bye to Stage 3. AFC then eliminates 19 teams through home-and-away playoffs. The top eleven winners go on to Stage 3, while the eight lowest-ranked winners move on to Stage 2, which involves four home-and-away play-offs among the lowest-ranked eight Stage 1 winners. All four winners of Stage 2 advance to Stage 3. The CAF then draws the 20 remaining teams (including those with byes from the previous stages) into five groups of four teams each. These teams play on a round robin, home-and-away basis. The five group winners and five runners-up advance to Stage 4.
In Stage 4, ten teams are placed into two groups of five, which are determined on a round robin, home-and-away basis. The top two teams in each group advance to the World Cup finals. Stage 5 involves the two third-place teams from Stage 4 in a home-and-away playoff to determine the fifth-place finisher from Asia. The playoff winner earns a playoff berth (which was against the top-team from Oceania in 2010 qualifying).
== CONCACAF ==
Thirty-five member nations participate in CONCACAF Qualifying. CONCACAF seeds the teams according to the latest FIFA ranking. The 13th-ranked team normally receives a bye to the second round, while the 22 lowest-ranked teams engage in 11 home-and-away playoffs. The twelve winners join the 13th place team and the top 11 teams in the second stage.
In the second phase, CONCACAF pairs the 24 remaining teams for 12 home-and-away playoffs. They draw the winners of these playoffs into three groups of four teams each that are settled on a round robin, home-and-away basis. The top two finishers in each group advance to the final round of six teams. Those six teams play on a round robin, home-and-away basis, with the top three advancing to the World Cup and the fourth-place team earning a playoff berth. For 2010 qualifying, this was a playoff against the fifth-place team from CONMEBOL.
== OCEANIA ==
Being the weakest confederation, Oceania has a simple qualifying format involving its 11 member nations. The top-ranked Oceania team receives a bye to Round 2. Round 1 takes place at the South Pacific Games, where the top three teams from that tournament join New Zealand in Round Two. That group of four teams is determined based on a round robin, home-and-away format. The top team would then earn a playoff. This was against the fifth place team from Asia for 2010 qualifying (previously, the playoff was against the fifth-place CONMEBOL finisher).
== CONMEBOL ==
South American qualifying has the simplest format. All 10 members play in a round robin, home-and-away basis in a single group. The top four teams qualify automatically for the World Cup finals, with the fifth place team earning the intercontinental playoff spot. For the 2010 FIFA WC, the fifth place team earned a playoff spot against the fourth placed CONCACAF finisher. Previously, CONMEBOL played off against Oceania.
== Conclusion ==
Teams like Mexico, Brazil and Germany regularly qualify for World Cup finals. Although some teams are regular fixtures in the quadrennial event, qualifying ensures that the best teams from various confederations get the chance to represent their country on the world stage.
Andre V is a freelance writer from the Caribbean. He is also a member of the Trinidad and Tobago Football Referees Association and an avid cricket fan.
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