The second leg of CONCACAF preliminary series 1 is set to proceed on SUN 17 JUL 2011 with FIFA’s temporary reinstatement of Belize. The match against Montserrat was to be played on SUN 19 JUN 2011, but as a result of a dispute with the Football Federation of Belize, the country’s government refused to provide security. FIFA responded by postponing the match and suspending Belize; although the suspension is now provisionally lifted, FIFA has insisted that the match be played on neutral ground to avoid the same problem recurring. San Pedro Sula, Honduras, is now the chosen venue for the second leg.

A quick summary of action around the AFC first preliminary round on SUN 03 JUL 2011. Series aggregate results are shown below. more...

Nepal defeated Timor-Leste 5-0 on SAT 02 JUL 2011 to claim a 7-1 aggregate win in their AFC preliminary semifinal series, as Timor-Leste become the first team to be eliminated from the qualifying campaign for Brazil 2014. The match was Timor-Leste’s home leg but was played in Kathmandu, Nepal. All five goals were scored by different players, including first leg goalscorers Anil GURUNG and Ju Manu RAI. Nepal now face Jordan in the final of series 15. The result leaves only 202 nations to compete for the other 31 places at the Men’s World Cup.

A quick summary of action around the AFC preliminary semifinals on TUE 28 JUN 2011. more...

FIFA has suspended the Football Federation of Belize, citing government interference and forcing the postponement of Belize’s upcoming qualifier. The government of Belize indicated in a letter to FIFA that police forces would not provide security at the second leg of the CONCACAF preliminary round series against Montserrat, owing to a dispute over the Belizean federation’s legal status. FIFA announced the suspension and the match postponement on FRI 17 JUN 2011, one day after receiving the letter. According to FIFA, Belize risks disqualification from the Brazil 2014 qualifiers if the dispute cannot be resolved by SUN 10 JUL 2011.

In the first qualifier for Brazil 2014, Belize defeated Montserrat 5-2 and took the early lead in their CONCACAF preliminary round series. Belize’s Deon MCCAULAY scored a hat trick, and Jay HODGSON scored Montserrat’s two. Belize host the second leg as they play for a place in the first group phase.

The first qualifier for the 2014 Men’s World Cup will see Montserrat host Belize at Couva in Trinidad-Tobago on WED 15 JUN 2011. This is one of five serieses in the CONCACAF preliminary round that is played over the coming month; the match that was to kick off the campaign, St Lucia-Aruba, has now been rescheduled to SAT 09 JUL 2011. In all, more than 800 qualifying matches are scheduled to be played to decide the other 31 nations that join automatic qualifiers Brazil.

The OFC will determine its entrant to the playoff for Brazil 2014 in much the same way as for the previous tournament. 10 of the 11 member nations are competing in the men’s football tournament at the Pacific Games. Kiribati and Tuvalu will also compete, but as they are not FIFA members, the top three finishers amongst the remaining teams will be eligible to compete in the final round, to which New Zealand receives a bye. The winner of this group competes in the playoff for a place at the Men’s World Cup. more...

The AFC qualifiers for the 2014 Men’s World Cup will proceed largely the same as for the previous tournament. 38 teams compete in the preliminary rounds, of which 16 are unseeded and must play a semifinal series first. The 15 winners of the final serieses then proceed to the first group phase with five teams that received byes. These teams compete in five groups of four; the top two advance to the second group phase and form two groups of five. The top two in each group qualify, and the third placed teams face one another in the playoffs. The winner then meets an opponent from another confederation. more...

Some changes have been made to the opening rounds of CONCACAF qualifiers for the 2014 Men’s World Cup. Instead of an opening round involving all 35 member nations, there will now be a preliminary round in which the ten lowest ranked teams play off for five places in the first group phase. Here, six groups of four teams each are formed, and the group winners proceed. These teams, plus six other teams that received byes, enter the semifinal round. From then on, the qualifying campaign proceeds as normal. The top two teams in each of the three semifinal groups advance to the final round, a single group from which the top three qualify and the fourth placed team enters the playoffs. more...

The CAF qualifying format for the 2014 Men’s World Cup represents a break from recent tradition. The campaign begins with a preliminary round in which the 24 lowest ranked teams play off for 12 places in the group phase. Here, they join the 28 highest ranked teams to form ten groups of four teams each. In a new wrinkle, the group winners must then play off for the five places in Brazil. The 28 teams to receive byes into the group phase will be determined based on the FIFA world rankings for JUL 2011. more...

The familiar Men’s World Cup qualifying format in UEFA returns for the 2014 edition. This time, with the same number of participants and the same number of slots available, the format will be completely identical as for South Africa 2010. In the group phase, the 53 nations, including defending champions Spain, will play in nine groups. The winners of each group will qualify, and the top eight amongst the second placed finishers will play off for the remaining four slots. The action is due to begin in SEP 2012. more...

CONMEBOL’s qualifiers for Brazil 2014 will remain the same as the last several tournaments, except, of course, for Brazil’s absence. Whilst the hosts sit out as automatic qualifiers, the other nine CONMEBOL members will play one another twice in the group phase. The four teams at the top qualify automatically, and the fifth placed team enters the playoffs against an opponent from another confederation. more...

Still three years away from the final tournament, the qualifiers for the 2014 Men’s World Cup are about to begin. The first qualifier is between St Lucia and Aruba, and more than 800 additional matches will be played over the next two and one half years to determine which 31 of the 203 hopefuls will join Brazil in 2014.