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FIFA World Cup qualifiers

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Selection process for World Cup competition

"World Cup qualification" redirects here. For other uses, seeWorld Cup qualification (disambiguation).

Football tournament

FIFA World Cup qualifiers

Founded	1933; 92 years ago (1933)
Region	International (FIFA)
Teams	211 (currently eligible) 215 (overall)
Website	Official website
2026 FIFA World Cup qualification

TheFIFA World Cup qualification is a set of competitive matches that a nationalassociation football team plays in order to qualify for one of the available berths at the final tournament of the men'sFIFA World Cup.

Qualifying tournaments are held within the sixFIFA continental zones, each organized by their respective confederations:AFC (Asia),CAF (Africa),CONCACAF (North and Central America and the Caribbean),CONMEBOL (South America),OFC (Oceania), andUEFA (Europe). For each World Cup, FIFA decides the number of places in the finals allocated to each of the zones, based on the numbers and relative strengths of the confederations' teams.

As a courtesy, the host receives an automatic berth selection, as has happened with the immediate past tournament winner during much of the competition's history. All other finalists are determined on a standalone qualifying round achievement without regard to previous achievements.

History

[edit]

The berths for the inaugural1930 tournament were filled by invitation only. The1934 one was the first one to havean actual qualifying phase. The first ever World Cup qualifying match was played on 11 June 1933, when Sweden defeated Estonia 6–2 in Stockholm, and the first goal was scored 7 minutes into the game, with some sources^[1] attributing it to Swedish captainKnut Kroon while others^[which?] credit it as anown goal by the Estonian goalkeeperEvald Tipner.

The number of teams entering qualification stages has increased steadily, and in response the final tournament has also been expanded (having 16 teams until 1978, then 24 between 1982 and 1994, then 32 between 1998 and 2022, and finally 48 from 2026 onwards). While the format of the qualifying tournaments has evolved, teams have always been grouped into zones which have remained relatively unchanged and roughly correspond to thecontinents. The teams from each zone compete for a fixed number of berths for the zone, with a limited number of places being awarded to winners of intercontinental play-offs.

Qualification berths by continent

[edit]

The table below lists the numbers of berths allocated by FIFA for each continent in each tournament. It also shows the total number of teams that entered and played in every qualification cycle.

In the table, "H" denotes an automatic spot for the host, "C" denotes an automatic spot for the defending champion, and "inv" indicates the number of teams that were invited in 1930. Places in intercontinental play-offs are represented as fractions, as follows:

0.5 – a place in a direct play-off
0.25 – a place in a semi-final play-off (where the winner would then face yet another team for a spot in the finals)
⁠1/3⁠ – a place in a play-off tournament where two out of six teams would qualify

Places allocated for continents
	1930 ^[a]	1934	1938	1950	1954	1958	1962	1966	1970	1974	1978	1982	1986	1990	1994
Europe	4 inv	12	11 +H+C	7 +C	11 +H	9^[b] +H+C	8+ 2×0.5	9 +H	8 +C	8.5 +H	8.5 +C	13 +H	12.5 +C	13 +H	12 +C
Africa	—	1	11 +H+C	0^[c]	11 +H	1^[b]	0.5	1	1	1	1	2	2	2	3
Asia	—	1	1	1	1	1^[b]	0.5		1	1	1	2	2	2	2
Oceania	—^[d]			0^[c]	0^[c]	0^[c]	0^[c]		1	1	1	2	0.5	0.5	0.25
North and Central America and Caribbean	2 inv	1	1	2	1	1	0.5	1	1 +H	1	1	2	1 +H	2	1.25 +H
South America	H+ 6 inv	2	1	4 +H	1 +C	3	3.5 +H+C	3 +C	3	2.5 +C	2.5 +H	3 +C	4	2.5 +C	3.5
Total berths	13	16	16		16							24
Teams in the finals	13	16	15^[e]	13^[f]	16							24
Entered qualification^[g]	—	32	34	32	37	51	54	69	69	97	105	107	119	111	145
Played in qualification^[h]		27	21	19	33	46	49	51	68	90	95	103	110	103	128
Qualified via qualification		14	10	9	13	14	14	14	14	14	14	22	22	22	22
Qualified without playing	13	2	6	7	3	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2

	1998	2002	2006	2010	2014	2018	2022	2026	2030	2034
Europe	14 +H	13.5 +C	13 +H	13	13	13 +H	13	16	2H
Africa	5	5	5	5 +H	5	5	5	⁠9+1/3⁠	H
Asia	3.5	2.5 +2H	4.5	4.5	4.5	4.5	4.5 +H	⁠8+1/3⁠		H
Oceania	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5	⁠1+1/3⁠
North and Central America and Caribbean	3	3	3.5	3.5	3.5	3.5	3.5	3⁠2/3⁠ +3H
South America	4 +C	4.5	4.5	4.5	4.5 +H	4.5	4.5	⁠6+1/3⁠	3H
Total berths	32							48	48 or 64
Teams in the finals	32							48	48 or 64
Entered qualification^[g]	172	196	197	205^[i]	203	210	211^[j]	207
Played in qualification^[h]	168	193	194	199^[i]	202	208	204^[j]	206
Qualified via qualification	30	29	31	31	31	31	31	45	42 / 58	47 / 63
Qualified without playing	2	3	1	1	1	1	1	3	6	1

Notes

^Berths were given by invitation only.
^^a ^bActually the berths were taken by 10 European teams and no African or Asian ones. After Israel won the African/Asian zone without playing due to withdrawals of other teams, a special play-off was arranged between them and a European team, Wales, and was won by the latter.
^^a ^b ^c ^d ^eNone entered.
^No teams from the region were members of FIFA before 1950.
^Austria withdrew after having qualified.
^India, Scotland and Turkey withdrew after having qualified. France initially accepted to participate as a replacement but then withdrew as well.
^^a ^bIncludes all teams that entered qualification, even if they withdrew or were excluded afterwards or qualified by walkover. Does not include pre-determined automatic qualifiers.
^^a ^bOnly includes teams that played at least one qualifying match that was not annulled.
^^a ^bIncluding host South Africa and non-FIFA member Tuvalu, which participated because other tournaments also served as World Cup qualifiers.
^^a ^bIncluding host Qatar, which participated because another tournament also served as World Cup qualifiers.

First appearance in qualification by team

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Only teams that played at least one match are considered for first appearance. Teams that withdrew before the qualification, or that qualified to the World Cup bywalkover due to other teams' withdrawals, are not considered.

Year	Debuting teams								Successor and renamed teams
Year	Europe	South America	North, Central America and Caribbean	Asia	Africa	Oceania	T	CT	Successor and renamed teams
1930	No qualification was held all the teams were invitees.
1934	Austria Belgium^[a] Bulgaria Czechoslovakia^[A] Estonia France^[a] Germany^[B] Greece Hungary Irish Free State^[C] Italy^{[N 1]} Lithuania Luxembourg Netherlands Poland Portugal Romania^[a] Spain Sweden Switzerland Yugoslavia^[a]^[D]	none	Cuba Haiti Mexico^[a] United States^[a]	Palestine, British Mandate^[E]	Egypt^[F]	none	27	27
1938	Finland Latvia Norway	none	none	none	none	none	3	30
1950	England Ireland^[G] Scotland Turkey^[b] Wales	none	none	Syria	none	none	6	36	Ireland^[C] Israel^[E]
1954	Saar	Brazil^[c] Chile^[d] Paraguay^[e]	none	Japan^[f] South Korea	none	none	6	42	Northern Ireland^[G] Republic of Ireland^[C] West Germany^[B]
1958	Denmark East Germany Iceland Soviet Union^[H]	Argentina^[g] Bolivia^[e] Colombia^[f] Peru^[h] Uruguay^[i]	Canada Costa Rica^[f] Guatemala Territory of Curaçao^[I]	China Indonesia^[j]	Sudan	none	16	58
1962	Cyprus^[k]	Ecuador^[l]	Dutch Guiana^[f]^[J] Honduras	none	Ethiopia Ghana Morocco Nigeria Tunisia	none	9	67	Netherlands Antilles^[I]
1966	Albania	Venezuela^[k]	Jamaica Trinidad and Tobago	North Korea	none	Australia	6	73
1970	none	none	Bermuda El Salvador^[f]	none	Algeria^[m] Cameroon^[m] Libya^[m] Rhodesia^[K] Senegal^[m] Zambia	New Zealand	9	82
1974	Malta	none	Antigua and Barbuda Puerto Rico	Hong Kong Iran Iraq Kuwait Malaysia South Vietnam^[L] Thailand	Congo Dahomey^[M] Guinea^[m] Ivory Coast Kenya Lesotho Mauritius Sierra Leone Tanzania Togo Zaire^[N]	none	21	103
1978	none	none	Barbados Dominican Republic Guyana Panama	Bahrain Qatar Republic of China^[n]^[O] Saudi Arabia Singapore	Malawi Mauritania Niger Uganda Upper Volta^[P]	none	14	117	Suriname^[J]
1982	none	none	Grenada	Macau	Gambia Liberia^[m] Madagascar^[o] Mozambique Somalia	Fiji	8	125	Chinese Taipei^[O] Zimbabwe^[K]
1986	none	none	none	Bangladesh Brunei Jordan India^[p] Nepal North Yemen^[Q] South Yemen United Arab Emirates^[q]	Angola	none	9	134	Benin^[M]
1990	none	none	none	Oman^[r] Pakistan	Gabon^[s]	none	3	137	Burkina Faso^[P]
1994	Faroe Islands San Marino	none	Nicaragua Saint Lucia Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	Lebanon^[t] Sri Lanka^[u]	Botswana Burundi Namibia South Africa Swaziland^[R]	Solomon Islands Tahiti Vanuatu	15	152	Germany^[B] Representation of Czechs and Slovaks^[A] Russia^[H] Vietnam^[L] Yemen^[Q]
1998	Armenia Azerbaijan Belarus Bosnia and Herzegovina Croatia Georgia Liechtenstein^[v] Macedonia^[S] Moldova Slovenia Ukraine	none	Aruba Belize Cayman Islands Dominica Saint Kitts and Nevis	Cambodia Kazakhstan Kyrgyzstan Maldives^[w] Philippines^[x] Tajikistan Turkmenistan Uzbekistan	Guinea-Bissau Rwanda^[w]	Cook Islands Papua New Guinea Tonga Western Samoa^[v]^[T]	31	183	Czech Republic^[A] Slovakia^[A] DR Congo^[N] FR Yugoslavia^[D]
2002	Andorra	none	Anguilla Bahamas^[y] British Virgin Islands Montserrat Turks and Caicos Islands U.S. Virgin Islands	Guam Laos Mongolia Palestine	Cape Verde Central African Republic^[z] Chad Djibouti Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Mali^[aa] São Tomé and Príncipe^[v] Seychelles	American Samoa	21	204	Samoa^[T]
2006	none	none	none	Afghanistan	none	New Caledonia	2	206	Serbia and Montenegro^[D]
2010	Montenegro	none	none	Timor-Leste Myanmar^[ab]	Comoros	Tuvalu^{[N 2]}	5	211	Serbia^[D]
2014	none	none	none	none	none	none	0	211	Curaçao^[I]
2018	Gibraltar Kosovo	none	none	Bhutan^[ac]	South Sudan	none	4	215
2022	none	none	none	none	none	none	0	215	Eswatini^[R] North Macedonia^[S]
2026	none	none	none	none	none	none	0	215

Teams' entries before their actual debuts in qualification

^^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^fParticipated in the 1930 World Cup by invitation.
^Withdrew from the 1934 qualification before playing.
^Participated in the 1930 World Cup by invitation. Qualified by walkover for the 1934 and 1938 finals. Qualified automatically for the 1950 World Cup as host.
^Participated in the 1930 World Cup by invitation. Withdrew from the 1934 qualification before playing. Qualified by walkover for the 1950 finals.
^^a ^bParticipated in the 1930 World Cup by invitation. Qualified by walkover for the 1950 finals.
^^a ^b ^c ^d ^eWithdrew from the 1938 qualification before playing.
^Participated in the 1930 World Cup by invitation. Qualified by walkover for the 1934 finals. Withdrew from the 1938 and 1950 qualifications before playing.
^Participated in the 1930 World Cup by invitation. Withdrew from the 1934, 1950, and 1954 qualifications before playing.
^Participated in the 1930 World Cup as host. Qualified by walkover for the 1950 finals. Qualified automatically for the 1954 finals as defending champion.
^Qualified by walkover for the 1938 finals (entered as the Dutch East Indies). Withdrew from the 1950 qualification before playing.
^^a ^bWithdrew from the 1958 qualification before playing.
^Withdrew from the 1950 qualification before playing.
^^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^fWithdrew from the 1966 qualification before playing.
^Withdrew from the 1954 and 1958 qualifications before playing.
^Withdrew from the 1974 qualification before playing (entered as the Malagasy Republic).
^Qualified by walkover for the 1950 finals, and subsequently withdrew from participation. Withdrew from the 1974 qualification before playing.
^Withdrew from the 1978 qualification before playing.
^Withdrew from the 1986 qualification before playing.
^Withdrew from the 1966 and 1974 qualifications before playing.
^Withdrew during the 1986 qualification and had all its matches of that campaign annulled.
^Withdrew from the 1974 and 1978 qualifications before playing (entered in 1974 as Ceylon).
^^a ^b ^cWithdrew from the 1994 qualification before playing.
^^a ^bWithdrew from the 1990 qualification before playing.
^Withdrew from the 1950 and 1974 qualifications before playing.
^Withdrew from the 1998 qualification before playing.
^Withdrew from the 1978 qualification before playing. Was disqualified from the 1982 qualification before playing.
^Withdrew from the 1966, 1994 and 1998 qualifications before playing.
^Withdrew from the 1950, 1994, and 2002 qualifications before playing (entered in 1950 as Burma).
^Withdrew from the 2010 qualification before playing.

Successor and renamed teams

^^a ^b ^c ^dTheCzechoslovakia team was officially renamed as the Representation of Czechs and Slovaks during the 1994 qualification and was then succeeded by both theCzech Republic andSlovakia from the 1998 qualification.
^^a ^b ^cGermany was succeeded from the 1954 qualification by West Germany, which in turn was succeeded by the reunified Germany from the 1994 qualification.
^^a ^b ^cThe Irish Free State was succeeded in the 1950 qualification by Ireland, which became officially known as the Republic of Ireland from the 1954 qualification.
^^a ^b ^c ^dYugoslavia was succeeded from the 1998 qualification byFR Yugoslavia, which was renamed asSerbia and Montenegro for the 2006 qualification and was then succeeded bySerbia from the 2010 qualification.
^^a ^bMandatory Palestine was succeeded byIsrael from the 1950 qualification.
^Egypt was later succeeded by the United Arab Republic, a political union with Syria, which entered the 1962 qualification, but withdrew before playing. Then Egypt continued independently but retained the name "United Arab Republic", under which it entered the 1966 qualification and also withdrew before playing. It was renamed back as "Egypt" from the 1974 qualification.
^^a ^bIreland was succeeded byNorthern Ireland from the 1954 qualification.
^^a ^bTheSoviet Union was succeeded byRussia from the 1994 qualification.
^^a ^b ^cTheTerritory of Curaçao was succeeded from the 1962 qualification by theNetherlands Antilles, which in turn was succeeded byCuraçao from the 2014 qualification.
^^a ^bDutch Guiana was succeeded by Suriname from the 1978 qualification.
^^a ^bRhodesia was succeeded by Zimbabwe from the 1982 qualification.
^^a ^bSouth Vietnam was succeeded byVietnam from the 1994 qualification.
^^a ^bDahomey was renamed as Benin from the 1986 qualification.
^^a ^bZaire was renamed as DR Congo during the 1998 qualification.
^^a ^bThe Republic of China became officially known as Chinese Taipei from the 1982 qualification.
^^a ^bUpper Volta was renamed as Burkina Faso from the 1990 qualification.
^^a ^bNorth Yemen was succeeded by Yemen from the 1994 qualification.
^^a ^bSwaziland was renamed as Eswatini from the 2022 qualification.
^^a ^bMacedonia was renamed as North Macedonia from the 2022 qualification.
^^a ^bWestern Samoa was renamed as Samoa from the 2002 qualification.

Other notes

^Italy had to qualify for the 1934 tournament despite being the host.
^Tuvalu, a non-FIFA member, formally could not enter the 2010 World Cup, but the team participated in the2007 South Pacific Games which doubled as a stage of the qualification for that World Cup, and the team's results did count in determining advancement from that stage.

Overview of teams' participations

[edit]

The below table shows how every team has participated in each World Cup qualification.

Key

golden background = successful qualifying campaign
grey background = did not take part in qualifying
bold red typeface = participated in the final tournament

Q	Qualified
w	Qualified, then withdrew from the finals (Austria in 1938, and Scotland and Turkey in 1950)
n	Did not qualify
w	Withdrew during qualifying
d	Was disqualified during qualifying
H	Qualified automatically as host but took part in qualifiers as they doubled as another tournament (South Africa in 2010 and Qatar in 2022)
\	Was not a FIFA member but took part in qualifiers as they doubled as another tournament (Tuvalu in 2010)
H	Qualified automatically as host
C	Qualified automatically as reigning champion
i	Was invited to the finals (all finalists in 1930 except Uruguay)
b	Received bye to the finals
B	Received bye to the finals, then withdrew (India in 1950)
w	Entered but withdrew before playing, or withdrew during qualifying and had all matches annulled
d	Entered but was disqualified before playing, or was disqualified during qualifying and had all matches annulled
s	Was suspended from entering, or had entry rejected
—	Did not enter despite being a FIFA member
	Was not a FIFA member

Team	19 30	19 34	19 38	19 50	19 54	19 58	19 62	19 66	19 70	19 74	19 78	19 82	19 86	19 90	19 94	19 98	20 02	20 06	20 10	20 14	20 18	20 22	20 26	20 30	20 34	Current confederation^[I]
Team																										Current confederation^[I]
Afghanistan				—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Albania		—	—	—	—	—	—	n	s	n	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n				UEFA
Algeria								w	n	n	n	Q	Q	n	n	n	n	n	Q	Q	n	n	Q			CAF
American Samoa																	n	n	n	n	n	w	n			OFC
Andorra																	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			UEFA
Angola													n	n	n	n	n	Q	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Anguilla																	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CONCACAF
Antigua and Barbuda										n	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CONCACAF
Argentina	i	b	w	w	—	Q	Q	Q	n	Q	H	C	Q	C	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	H		CONMEBOL
Armenia																n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			UEFA
Aruba															—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CONCACAF
Australia								n	n	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q			AFC^[II]
Austria	—	Q	w	w	Q	Q	—	n	n	n	Q	Q	n	Q	n	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q			UEFA
Azerbaijan																n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			UEFA
Bahamas									—	—	—	—	—	—	—	w	n	n	n	w	n	n	n			CONCACAF
Bahrain									—	—	n	n	n	w	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Bangladesh											—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Barbados									—	—	n	—	w	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	d	n	n			CONCACAF
Belarus																n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			UEFA
Belgium	i	Q	Q	w	Q	n	n	n	Q	n	n	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	n	n	Q	Q	Q	Q			UEFA
Belize														s	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CONCACAF
Benin(1978–) Dahomey(1970–1974)									—	n	—	—	n	—	n	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Bermuda								—	n	—	—	—	—	—	n	w	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CONCACAF
Bhutan																	—	—	w	—	n	n	n			AFC
Bolivia	i	—	—	b	s	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n	n				CONMEBOL
Bosnia and Herzegovina																n	n	n	n	Q	n	n				UEFA
Botswana												—	—	—	n	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Brazil	i	b	b	H	Q	Q	C	C	Q	C	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	C	Q	Q	Q	H	Q	Q	Q			CONMEBOL
British Virgin Islands																	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CONCACAF
Brunei										—	—	—	n	—	—	—	n	—	—	s	n	n	n			AFC
Bulgaria	—	w	n	—	n	n	Q	Q	Q	Q	n	n	Q	n	Q	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			UEFA
Burkina Faso(1986–) Upper Volta(1970–1982)									—	—	n	—	—	n	w	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Burundi											—	—	—	—	n	w	w	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Cambodia^[i]						—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	n	n	—	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Cameroon								w	n	n	n	Q	n	Q	Q	Q	Q	n	Q	Q	n	Q	n			CAF
Canada				—	—	n	w	—	n	n	n	n	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q	H			CONCACAF
Cape Verde														—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q			CAF
Cayman Islands																n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CONCACAF
Central African Republic								—	—	—	w	d	—	—	—	—	n	w	w	n	n	n	n			CAF
Chad								—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Chile	i	w	—	b	n	n	H	Q	n	Q	n	Q	n	n	s	Q	n	n	Q	Q	n	n	n			CONMEBOL
China		—	—	—	—	n	—	—	—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Chinese Taipei(1982–) Republic of China(1954–1978)					w	w	—	—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			AFC^[III]
Colombia			w	—	—	n	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q	Q	Q	n	n	n	Q	Q	n	Q			CONMEBOL^[IV]
Comoros																			n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Congo								s	—	n	n	—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Cook Islands																n	n	n	n	n	n	w	n			OFC
Costa Rica	—	—	w	—	s	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q	n	n	Q	Q	n	Q	Q	Q	n			CONCACAF
Croatia																Q	Q	Q	n	Q	Q	Q	Q			UEFA
Cuba		n	b	n	s	—	—	n	s	—	n	n	—	n	w	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CONCACAF
Curaçao(2014–) Netherlands Antilles(1962–2010) Territory of Curaçao(1934–1958)		—	—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q			CONCACAF
Cyprus						w	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			UEFA^[V]
Czech Republic(1998–) Representation of Czechs and Slovaks(1994) Czechoslovakia(1930–1994)	—	Q	Q	—	Q	Q	Q	n	Q	n	n	Q	n	Q	n	n	n	Q	n	n	n	n				UEFA
Denmark	—	—	—	—	—	n	—	n	n	n	n	n	Q	n	n	Q	Q	n	Q	n	Q	Q				UEFA
Djibouti																—	n	—	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Dominica																n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CONCACAF
Dominican Republic						—	—	—	—	—	n	—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CONCACAF
DR Congo(1998–) Zaire(1974–1998)^[ii]								—	s	Q	w	n	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n				CAF
East Germany					—	n	n	n	n	Q	n	n	n	n												defunct^[VI]
Timor-Leste																			n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Ecuador	—	—	—	w	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q	Q	n	Q	n	Q	Q			CONMEBOL
Egypt^[iii]	—	Q	w	—	n	w	w	w	—	n	n	n	n	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q	n	Q			CAF^[VII]
El Salvador			w	—	—	—	—	—	Q	n	n	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CONCACAF
England				Q	Q	Q	Q	H	C	n	n	Q	Q	Q	n	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q			UEFA
Equatorial Guinea														—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Eritrea																	n	n	w	n	n	n	w			CAF
Estonia	—	n	n												n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			UEFA
Eswatini(2022–) Swaziland(1982–2018)												—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Ethiopia					—	s	n	w	n	n	n	n	n	—	n	—	n	n	d	n	n	n	n			CAF^[VIII]
Faroe Islands															n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			UEFA
Fiji								—	—	—	—	n	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			OFC
Finland	—	—	n	w	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			UEFA
France	i	Q	H	n	Q	Q	n	Q	n	n	Q	Q	Q	n	n	H	C	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q			UEFA
Gabon								w	—	w	—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Gambia									—	—	—	n	n	—	w	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Georgia																n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			UEFA
Germany(1994–) West Germany(1950–1990) Germany(1930–1938)	—	Q	Q	s	Q	C	Q	Q	Q	H	C	Q	Q	Q	C	Q	Q	H	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q			UEFA
Ghana							n	w	n	n	n	w	n	n	n	n	n	Q	Q	Q	n	Q	Q			CAF
Gibraltar																					n	n	n			UEFA
Greece	—	w	n	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q	n	n	n	Q	Q	n	n	n			UEFA
Grenada												n	w	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CONCACAF
Guam																—	n	w	w	—	n	n	n			AFC
Guatemala				—	—	n	n	s	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CONCACAF
Guinea								w	s	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	d	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Guinea-Bissau														—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Guyana										—	n	n	n	n	n	n	d	n	n	n	n	n	n			CONCACAF
Haiti		n	—	—	n	—	—	—	n	Q	n	n	n	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q			CONCACAF
Honduras				—	—	—	n	n	n	n	w	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q	Q	n	n	n			CONCACAF
Hong Kong						—	—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Hungary	—	Q	Q	—	b	Q	Q	Q	n	n	Q	Q	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			UEFA
Iceland				—	s	n	—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q	n	n			UEFA
India				B	s	—	—	—	—	w	—	—	n	w	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Indonesia^[iv]			b	w	—	w	w	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	d	n	n			AFC
Iran				—	—	—	—	—	—	n	Q	w	d	n	n	Q	n	Q	n	Q	Q	Q	Q			AFC
Iraq					—	—	—	—	—	n	w	n	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n				AFC
Israel(1950–) Palestine, British Mandate(1930–1938)	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			UEFA^[IX]
Italy	—	Q	C	C	Q	n	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	C	H	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	n	n				UEFA
Ivory Coast								—	—	n	n	—	n	n	n	n	n	Q	Q	Q	n	n	Q			CAF
Jamaica								n	n	w	n	—	d	n	n	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n				CONCACAF
Japan	—	—	w	s	n	—	n	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q	H	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q			AFC
Jordan						—	—	—	—	—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q			AFC
Kazakhstan																n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			UEFA^[X]
Kenya							—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Kosovo																					n	n				UEFA
Kuwait								—	—	n	n	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	d	n	n			AFC
Kyrgyzstan																n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Laos					—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	n	n	—	n	n	n	n			AFC
Latvia	—	—	n												n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			UEFA
Lebanon			—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	w	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Lesotho								—	—	n	—	n	w	w	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Liberia								w	—	—	—	n	n	n	w	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Libya								w	n	—	n	w	n	w	d	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Liechtenstein											—	—	—	—	w	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			UEFA
Lithuania	—	n	n												n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			UEFA
Luxembourg	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			UEFA
Macau												n	n	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Madagascar^[v]								—	—	w	—	n	n	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Malawi									—	—	n	n	n	n	w	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Malaysia^[vi]						—	—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Maldives														w	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Mali								w	—	—	—	—	—	—	w	w	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Malta							—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			UEFA
Mauritania										—	n	—	—	—	w	n	n	n	n	—	n	n	n			CAF
Mauritius								—	—	n	—	—	n	s	—	n	n	n	n	w	n	n	n			CAF
Mexico	i	n	w	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	H	n	Q	n	H	d	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	H			CONCACAF
Moldova																n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			UEFA
Mongolia																	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Montenegro																			n	n	n	n	n			UEFA
Montserrat																	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CONCACAF
Morocco							n	w	Q	w	n	n	Q	n	Q	Q	n	n	n	n	Q	Q	Q	H		CAF
Mozambique												n	—	s	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Myanmar^[vii]				w	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	w	—	w	s	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Namibia															n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Nepal										—	—	—	n	n	—	n	n	w	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Netherlands	—	Q	Q	—	—	n	n	n	n	Q	Q	n	n	Q	Q	Q	n	Q	Q	Q	n	Q	Q			UEFA
New Caledonia																		n	n	n	n	n				OFC
New Zealand				—	—	—	—	—	n	n	n	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q	n	n	n	Q			OFC
Nicaragua					—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CONCACAF
Niger								—	—	—	n	n	w	—	n	w	—	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Nigeria							n	w	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q	Q	Q	n	Q	Q	Q	n	n			CAF
North Korea							—	Q	d	n	w	n	n	n	n	—	—	n	Q	n	n	w	n			AFC
North Macedonia(2022–) Macedonia(1998–2018)																n	n	n	n	n	n	n				UEFA
Northern Ireland(1954–) Ireland(1950)				n	n	Q	n	n	n	n	n	Q	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n				UEFA
Norway	—	—	Q	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q			UEFA
Oman												—	w	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Pakistan				—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Palestine																	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Panama				—	—	—	—	—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q	n	Q			CONCACAF
Papua New Guinea									—	—	—	—	—	—	—	n	—	n	—	n	n	n	n			OFC
Paraguay	i	—	—	b	n	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q	n	n	Q	Q	Q	Q	n	n	n	Q	H		CONMEBOL
Peru	i	w	—	w	w	n	n	n	Q	n	Q	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q	n	n			CONMEBOL
Philippines		—	—	w	—	—	—	s	—	w	—	—	—	—	—	n	n	—	—	n	n	n	n			AFC
Poland	—	n	Q	—	w	n	n	n	n	Q	Q	Q	Q	n	n	n	Q	Q	n	n	Q	Q				UEFA
Portugal	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q	n	n	n	n	Q	n	n	n	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	H		UEFA
Puerto Rico							—	—	—	n	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	—	n	n	n	n	n			CONCACAF
Qatar										—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	H	Q			AFC
Republic of Ireland(1954–) Ireland(1950) Irish Free State(1930–1938)	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q	Q	n	Q	n	n	n	n	n				UEFA
Romania	i	Q	b	—	n	n	w	n	Q	n	n	n	n	Q	Q	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n				UEFA
Russia(1994–) Soviet Union(1950–1990)				—	—	Q	Q	Q	Q	d	n	Q	Q	Q	Q	n	Q	n	n	Q	H	d	s			UEFA
Rwanda												—	—	w	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Saar					n																					defunct^[VI]
Saint Kitts and Nevis																n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CONCACAF
Saint Lucia															n	n	n	n	n	n	n	w	n			CONCACAF
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines															n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CONCACAF
Samoa(2002–) Western Samoa(1990–1998)														—	w	n	n	n	n	n	n	w	n			OFC
San Marino															n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			UEFA
São Tomé and Príncipe														—	w	—	n	n	w	n	n	n	n			CAF
Saudi Arabia						—	—	—	—	—	n	n	n	n	Q	Q	Q	Q	n	n	Q	Q	Q		H	AFC
Scotland				w	Q	Q	n	n	n	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	n	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q			UEFA
Senegal								w	n	n	n	n	n	—	n	n	Q	n	n	n	Q	Q	Q			CAF
Serbia(2010–) Serbia and Montenegro(2006) FR Yugoslavia(1994–2002) Yugoslavia(1930–1990)	i	n	n	Q	Q	Q	Q	n	n	Q	n	Q	n	Q	d	Q	n	Q	Q	n	Q	Q	n			UEFA
Seychelles														—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Sierra Leone							—	—	—	n	n	n	n	—	w	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Singapore					—	—	—	—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Slovakia																n	n	n	Q	n	n	n				UEFA
Slovenia																n	Q	n	Q	n	n	n	n			UEFA
Solomon Islands															n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			OFC
Somalia								—	—	—	—	n	—	—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
South Africa							s	d	s	s	s				n	Q	Q	n	H	n	n	n	Q			CAF
South Korea				—	Q	s	n	w	n	n	n	n	Q	Q	Q	Q	H	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q			AFC
South Sudan																					n	n	n			CAF
South Yemen									—	—	—	—	n	w												defunct^[XI]
Spain	—	Q	s	Q	n	n	Q	Q	n	n	Q	H	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	H		UEFA
Sri Lanka^[viii]					—	—	—	—	—	w	w	—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Sudan				—	—	w	w	w	n	n	w	n	n	n	w	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Suriname(1978–) Dutch Guiana(1930–1974)	—	—	w	—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n				CONCACAF
Sweden	—	Q	Q	Q	n	H	n	n	Q	Q	Q	n	n	Q	Q	n	Q	Q	n	n	Q	n				UEFA
Switzerland	—	Q	Q	Q	H	n	Q	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q	n	n	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q			UEFA
Syria			—	w	—	n		w	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	d	n	n	n			AFC^[XII]
Tahiti															n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			OFC
Tajikistan																n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Tanzania								—	—	n	w	n	n	—	w	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Thailand	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Togo								—	—	n	n	n	w	w	n	n	n	Q	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Tonga																n	n	n	n	n	n	w	n			OFC
Trinidad and Tobago				—	—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q	n	n	n	n	n			CONCACAF
Tunisia							n	w	n	n	Q	n	n	n	n	Q	Q	Q	n	n	Q	Q	Q			CAF
Turkey	—	w	—	w	Q	w	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q	n	n	n	n	n				UEFA^[XIII]
Turkmenistan																n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Turks and Caicos Islands																	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CONCACAF
Tuvalu																			\							OFC
Uganda							—	—	—	—	n	w	n	n	w	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Ukraine																n	n	Q	n	n	n	n				UEFA
United Arab Emirates											w	—	n	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
United States	i	Q	w	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q	H	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	n	Q	H			CONCACAF
U.S. Virgin Islands																	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CONCACAF
Uruguay	H	—	—	b	C	n	Q	Q	Q	Q	n	n	Q	Q	n	n	Q	n	Q	Q	Q	Q	Q	H		CONMEBOL
Uzbekistan																n	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q			AFC
Vanuatu															n	n	n	n	n	n	n	w	n			OFC
Venezuela					—	w	—	n	n	w	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CONMEBOL
Vietnam(1978–) South Vietnam(1954–1974)					s	—	—	—	—	n	w	—	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Wales				n	n	Q	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	Q				UEFA
Yemen(1994–) North Yemen(1982–1990)												—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			AFC
Zambia								—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n			CAF
Zimbabwe(1982–) Rhodesia(1970–1978)									n	—	—	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	n	d	n	n			CAF^[XIV]
Team	19 30	19 34	19 38	19 50	19 54	19 58	19 62	19 66	19 70	19 74	19 78	19 82	19 86	19 90	19 94	19 98	20 02	20 06	20 10	20 14	20 18	20 22	20 26	20 30	20 34	Current confederation

Non-participating incarnations

^Known as the Khmer Republic in 1974, and then as Kampuchea until 1990.
^Known as Congo-Kinshasa until 1970.
^Entered in 1962 as the United Arab Republic representinga political union with Syria. After that continued independently but retained the name "United Arab Republic" until 1970.
^Entered as the Dutch East Indies in 1938.
^Known as the Malagasy Republic until 1974.
^Preceded by Malaya until 1962.
^Known as Burma until 1990.
^Known as Ceylon until 1974.

Continental allocations

^Africa and Asia had a joint zone in 1934 and 1958. Africa, Asia and Oceania had a joint zone in 1966. Asia and Oceania had a joint zone in 1970–1982.
^Entered the Oceanian zone in 1986–2006.
^Entered the Oceanian zone in 1986–1990.
^Entered the North and Central American zone in 1938.
^Entered the African/Asian zone in 1958.
^^a ^bParticipated in the European zone.
^Entered the European zone in 1938 and 1954.
^Entered the European zone in 1962.
^Entered the African/Asian zone in 1934 and 1958, the Asian/Oceanian zone in 1970–1978, and the Oceanian zone in 1986–1990.
^Entered the Asian zone in 1998–2002.
^Participated in the Asian zone.
^Entered the European zone in 1950 and 1966.
^Entered the African/Asian zone in 1934 and 1958.
^Entered the Asian/Oceanian zone in 1970.

Overall team records

[edit]

The below table compares the overall records of all teams that have participated in qualification. Teams are ordered by points using thethree points for a win system, then by goal difference, and then by goals scored. Note that this order does not represent any official rankings, and qualification tournaments are not direct competitions among all teams.

The "Qualifying attempts" column counts qualifying campaigns where the team played at least one match that was not annulled. An attempt is treated as "successful" if the team gained the right to participate in the finals, even if it did not appear there eventually.

As per statistical convention in football, goals scored duringextra time are counted towards matches' scorelines and outcomes, while goals scored duringpenalty shoot-outs are not. Annulled matches are not counted; for matches that were annulled and then replayed, only the replays are counted. For matches where the scorelines were awarded, the awarded scorelines, and not the original ones (if any), are counted.

Ecuador was deducted 3 points in the 2026 qualifying, which is reflected in the table.

Key
Team has qualified for the main tournament through a qualifying process
Team has qualified for the main tournament only by walkover (Cuba, and Indonesia as Dutch East Indies)
Team has qualified for the main tournament by walkover but has not participated there because it withdrew (India)
Team has not qualified for the main tournament
Defunct team that qualified for the main tournament (East Germany)
Defunct team that never qualified for the main tournament (Saar and South Yemen)
Team is not a member of FIFA and is not eligible for the main tournament (Tuvalu)

Teams inbold are currently participating or are yet to start in the2026 qualification. The table is updated to the matches played in November 2024.

Rank (unoff.)	Team	Qualifying attempts		Appearances in the finals	Overall qualification record							Points		Confederation
Rank (unoff.)	Team	Total	Successful	Appearances in the finals	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Total	Avg	Confederation
1	Mexico	17	14	18	189	121	41	27	453	134	+319	404	2.138	CONCACAF
2	South Korea	16	10	11	163	103	42	18	331	96	+235	351	2.153	AFC
3	Australia	16	6	6	173	102	44	27	435	130	+305	350	2.023	AFC
4	Iran	12	6	6	158	101	38	19	344	98	+246	341	2.158	AFC
5	Costa Rica	18	6	6	189	95	47	47	316	184	+132	332	1.757	CONCACAF
6	Argentina	15	13	18	165	94	43	28	283	142	+141	325	1.970	CONMEBOL
7	Japan	16	6	7	150	94	28	28	351	93	+258	310	2.067	AFC
8	Brazil	14	13	22	139	87	36	16	297	86	+211	297	2.137	CONMEBOL
9	Uruguay	18	11	14	184	82	51	51	257	195	+62	297	1.614	CONMEBOL
10	Saudi Arabia	13	6	6	148	86	36	26	281	112	+169	294	1.986	AFC
11	Netherlands	19	11	11	135	89	26	20	329	101	+228	293	2.170	UEFA
12	United States	19	9	12	168	84	40	44	287	191	+96	292	1.738	CONCACAF
13	Spain	19	15	16	125	87	26	12	291	81	+210	287	2.296	UEFA
14	Portugal	21	8	8	149	83	35	31	284	146	+138	284	1.906	UEFA
15	England	17	14	16	122	84	27	11	314	70	+244	279	2.287	UEFA
16	Sweden	20	11	12	141	86	21	34	280	129	+151	279	1.979	UEFA
17	Serbia Serbia and Montenegro FR Yugoslavia Yugoslavia	20	12	13	136	81	33	22	287	123	+164	276	2.029	UEFA
18	Belgium	20	13	14	141	83	27	31	302	147	+155	276	1.957	UEFA
19	Czech Republic Representation of Czechs and Slovaks Czechoslovakia	20	9	9	147	79	31	37	280	126	+154	268	1.823	UEFA
20	Germany West Germany Germany	15	15	20	104	83	18	3	328	74	+254	267	2.567	UEFA
21	Russia Soviet Union	16	10	11	125	80	24	21	246	81	+165	264	2.112	UEFA
22	Italy	17	14	18	118	78	30	10	234	72	+162	264	2.237	UEFA
23	Paraguay	19	6	8	184	73	42	69	221	222	−1	261	1.418	CONMEBOL
24	Colombia	18	6	6	182	67	58	57	215	188	+27	259	1.423	CONMEBOL
25	Honduras	16	3	3	166	71	44	51	271	201	+70	257	1.548	CONCACAF
26	China	13	1	1	138	77	22	39	284	121	+163	253	1.833	AFC
27	El Salvador	15	2	2	162	71	34	57	263	188	+75	247	1.525	CONCACAF
28	Romania	18	5	7	138	72	29	37	238	142	+96	245	1.775	UEFA
29	Switzerland	20	11	12	140	68	37	35	220	150	+70	241	1.721	UEFA
30	Chile	17	6	9	176	68	36	72	245	241	+4	240	1.364	CONMEBOL
31	Scotland	19	9	8	136	69	30	37	210	146	+64	237	1.743	UEFA
32	France	18	12	16	119	70	26	23	234	91	+143	236	1.983	UEFA
33	Denmark	16	6	6	132	67	30	35	242	144	+98	231	1.750	UEFA
34	Tunisia	16	6	6	116	65	31	20	198	86	+112	226	1.948	CAF
35	Poland	19	9	9	128	67	23	38	260	154	+106	224	1.750	UEFA
36	Canada	15	2	3	137	62	38	37	215	144	+71	224	1.635	CONCACAF
37	Iraq	13	1	1	131	63	34	34	243	124	+119	223	1.702	AFC
38	Morocco	16	6	6	122	61	39	22	185	84	+101	222	1.820	CAF
39	Nigeria	16	6	6	116	62	35	19	189	89	+100	221	1.905	CAF
40	Austria	19	8	7	134	64	29	41	232	155	+77	221	1.649	UEFA
41	Republic of Ireland Ireland Irish Free State	21	3	3	149	58	46	45	210	177	+33	220	1.477	UEFA
42	Ecuador	17	4	4	173	60	42	71	207	225	−18	219	1.266	CONMEBOL
43	Qatar	13	1	2	132	64	25	43	227	142	+85	217	1.644	AFC
44	Hungary	19	8	9	132	63	28	41	235	176	+59	217	1.644	UEFA
45	Bulgaria	20	7	7	137	62	29	46	215	191	+24	215	1.569	UEFA
46	Uzbekistan	8	1	1	114	62	22	30	216	113	+103	208	1.825	AFC
47	Trinidad and Tobago	16	1	1	143	58	30	55	216	187	+29	204	1.427	CONCACAF
48	Egypt	16	3	3	105	60	22	23	187	96	+91	202	1.924	CAF
49	United Arab Emirates	11	1	1	128	59	25	44	222	133	+89	202	1.578	AFC
50	New Zealand	15	2	2	105	61	18	26	258	102	+156	201	1.914	OFC
51	Cameroon	15	8	8	99	59	24	16	167	74	+93	201	2.030	CAF
52	Greece	20	3	3	136	56	33	47	167	179	−12	201	1.478	UEFA
53	Peru	18	4	5	180	51	45	84	186	248	−62	198	1.100	CONMEBOL
54	Guatemala	17	0	0	128	54	32	42	217	150	+67	194	1.516	CONCACAF
55	Turkey	18	3	2	139	53	27	59	204	206	−2	186	1.338	UEFA
56	Kuwait	14	1	1	113	54	21	38	190	116	+74	183	1.619	AFC
57	Norway	19	3	3	136	49	33	54	185	186	−1	180	1.324	UEFA
58	Northern Ireland Ireland	19	3	3	142	45	39	58	155	168	−13	174	1.225	UEFA
59	Bolivia	18	1	3	180	47	33	100	213	353	−140	174	0.967	CONMEBOL
60	Ivory Coast	13	3	3	88	48	27	13	166	70	+96	171	1.943	CAF
61	Israel Palestine, British Mandate	21	1	1	132	45	35	52	189	199	−10	170	1.288	UEFA
62	Algeria	15	4	4	101	48	25	28	161	101	+60	169	1.673	CAF
63	Ghana	15	4	4	95	47	25	23	147	75	+72	166	1.747	CAF
64	Zambia	15	0	0	106	48	21	37	159	104	+55	165	1.557	CAF
65	Syria	16	0	0	108	46	24	38	214	132	+82	162	1.500	AFC
66	Wales	19	2	2	130	43	29	58	168	180	−12	158	1.215	UEFA
67	Oman	10	0	0	100	45	22	33	159	97	+62	157	1.570	AFC
68	Jamaica	13	1	1	120	41	32	47	131	156	−25	155	1.292	CONCACAF
69	Bahrain	12	0	0	108	39	33	36	136	111	+25	150	1.389	AFC
70	Croatia	7	6	6	72	43	20	9	129	51	+78	149	2.069	UEFA
71	Haiti	16	2	2	97	44	17	36	170	126	+44	149	1.536	CONCACAF
72	North Korea	11	2	2	95	42	21	32	132	93	+39	147	1.547	AFC
73	Panama	13	2	2	116	40	26	50	147	179	−32	146	1.259	CONCACAF
74	DR Congo Zaire	12	1	1	88	41	21	26	143	94	+49	144	1.636	CAF
75	Ukraine	7	1	1	80	38	28	14	122	62	+60	142	1.775	UEFA
76	Jordan	11	1	1	90	38	20	32	143	104	+39	134	1.489	AFC
77	Finland	20	0	0	137	35	25	77	144	297	−153	130	0.949	UEFA
78	Senegal	14	3	3	75	34	25	16	112	62	+50	127	1.693	CAF
79	Guinea	14	0	0	85	37	14	34	123	112	+11	125	1.471	CAF
80	Slovakia	7	1	1	74	35	19	20	127	74	+53	124	1.676	UEFA
81	Venezuela	15	0	0	170	30	32	108	145	363	−218	122	0.718	CONMEBOL
82	South Africa	9	2	3	60	34	10	16	78	52	+26	112	1.867	CAF
83	Iceland	14	1	1	116	30	22	64	128	233	−105	112	0.966	UEFA
84	Angola	11	1	1	73	28	27	18	90	67	+23	111	1.521	CAF
85	Thailand	14	0	0	103	28	23	52	134	174	−40	107	1.039	AFC
86	Burkina Faso Upper Volta	10	0	0	70	30	15	25	106	87	+19	105	1.500	CAF
87	Slovenia	7	2	2	72	29	17	26	94	80	+14	104	1.444	UEFA
88	Bosnia and Herzegovina	7	1	1	66	29	14	23	121	81	+40	101	1.530	UEFA
89	Kenya	14	0	0	78	25	21	32	88	103	−15	96	1.231	CAF
90	Indonesia Dutch East Indies	14	0	1	93	25	21	47	118	187	−69	96	1.032	AFC
91	Lebanon	9	0	0	78	24	21	33	108	106	+2	93	1.192	AFC
92	Hong Kong	14	0	0	89	25	18	46	103	158	−55	93	1.045	AFC
93	Togo	12	1	1	75	24	20	31	78	96	−18	92	1.227	CAF
94	Malaysia	14	0	0	75	26	14	35	104	133	−29	92	1.227	AFC
95	Libya	12	0	0	66	25	15	26	71	72	−1	90	1.364	CAF
96	Gabon	10	0	0	67	26	12	29	71	78	−7	90	1.343	CAF
97	Cuba	14	0	1	74	23	20	31	96	108	−12	89	1.203	CONCACAF
98	Suriname Dutch Guiana	16	0	0	71	24	14	33	114	116	−2	86	1.211	CONCACAF
99	Zimbabwe Rhodesia	12	0	0	73	22	20	31	69	90	−21	86	1.178	CAF
100	Albania	13	0	0	114	24	14	76	84	200	−116	86	0.754	UEFA
101	Solomon Islands	9	0	0	60	24	9	27	122	126	−4	81	1.350	OFC
102	Latvia	9	0	0	85	21	18	46	93	144	−51	81	0.953	UEFA
103	Singapore	13	0	0	84	23	12	49	89	168	−79	81	0.964	AFC
104	Congo	11	0	0	71	21	16	34	77	106	−29	79	1.113	CAF
105	Sudan	14	0	0	76	19	22	35	71	115	−44	79	1.039	CAF
106	Fiji	11	0	0	59	22	12	25	119	109	+10	78	1.322	OFC
107	Mali	7	0	0	52	20	15	17	66	57	+9	75	1.442	CAF
108	North Macedonia Macedonia	7	0	0	72	20	15	37	95	115	−20	75	1.042	UEFA
109	East Germany	9	1	1	47	22	8	17	87	65	+22	74	1.574	defunct
110	Curaçao Netherlands Antilles Territory of Curaçao	18	1	1	68	18	20	30	75	120	−45	74	1.088	CONCACAF
111	Liberia	11	0	0	70	20	13	37	52	96	−44	73	1.043	CAF
112	Malawi	12	0	0	70	18	17	35	63	98	−35	71	1.014	CAF
113	Lithuania	10	0	0	81	18	16	47	63	130	−67	70	0.864	UEFA
114	New Caledonia	6	0	0	41	20	9	12	96	50	+46	69	1.683	OFC
115	Uganda	11	0	0	52	19	12	21	48	63	−15	69	1.327	CAF
116	Tajikistan	8	0	0	50	19	10	21	88	74	+14	67	1.340	AFC
117	Turkmenistan	8	0	0	52	20	7	25	76	84	−8	67	1.288	AFC
118	Tahiti	9	0	0	48	19	8	21	72	88	−16	65	1.354	OFC
119	Kyrgyzstan	8	0	0	51	19	7	25	76	81	−5	64	1.255	AFC
120	Benin Dahomey	10	0	0	54	18	9	27	55	96	−41	63	1.167	CAF
121	Vietnam South Vietnam	10	0	0	65	19	6	40	70	115	−45	63	0.969	AFC
122	Estonia	10	0	0	84	17	12	55	74	187	−113	63	0.750	UEFA
123	Cyprus	16	0	0	124	16	15	93	91	320	−229	63	0.508	UEFA
124	Yemen North Yemen	11	0	0	66	15	16	35	67	108	−41	61	0.924	AFC
125	Cape Verde	7	1	1	44	18	6	20	46	56	−10	60	1.364	CAF
126	Bermuda	9	0	0	42	16	11	15	85	65	+20	59	1.405	CONCACAF
127	Armenia	7	0	0	72	13	17	42	61	142	−81	56	0.778	UEFA
128	Madagascar	11	0	0	46	15	10	21	54	62	−8	55	1.196	CAF
129	Namibia	9	0	0	54	14	13	27	52	94	−42	55	1.019	CAF
130	Palestine	7	0	0	46	14	12	20	68	60	+8	54	1.174	AFC
131	Belarus	7	0	0	66	14	12	40	68	121	−53	54	0.818	UEFA
132	Saint Kitts and Nevis	8	0	0	38	15	8	15	73	66	+7	53	1.395	CONCACAF
133	India	10	0	0	57	12	17	28	52	101	−49	53	0.930	AFC
134	Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	9	0	0	64	15	8	41	82	193	−111	53	0.828	CONCACAF
135	Montenegro	4	0	0	40	13	13	14	61	58	+3	52	1.300	UEFA
136	Antigua and Barbuda	12	0	0	48	15	7	26	73	100	−27	52	1.083	CONCACAF
137	Mozambique	10	0	0	46	14	9	23	41	63	−22	51	1.109	CAF
138	Ethiopia	13	0	0	53	11	17	25	53	77	−24	50	0.943	CAF
139	Sierra Leone	12	0	0	51	13	11	27	45	77	−32	50	0.980	CAF
140	Georgia	7	0	0	64	11	17	36	57	101	−44	50	0.781	UEFA
141	Kazakhstan	7	0	0	68	12	14	42	76	148	−72	50	0.735	UEFA
142	Tanzania	11	0	0	44	11	14	19	45	62	−17	47	1.068	CAF
143	Dominican Republic	10	0	0	35	13	6	16	54	55	−1	45	1.286	CONCACAF
144	Niger	9	0	0	39	13	6	20	45	67	−22	45	1.154	CAF
145	Bangladesh	11	0	0	66	11	10	45	41	163	−122	43	0.652	AFC
146	Vanuatu	8	0	0	40	13	3	24	81	100	−19	42	1.050	OFC
147	Botswana	8	0	0	40	12	6	22	39	58	−19	42	1.050	CAF
148	Rwanda	8	0	0	48	10	11	27	44	64	−20	41	0.854	CAF
149	Barbados	10	0	0	43	11	6	26	40	83	−43	39	0.907	CONCACAF
150	Azerbaijan	7	0	0	66	7	15	44	34	122	−88	36	0.545	UEFA
151	Papua New Guinea	6	0	0	29	9	7	13	53	49	+4	34	1.172	OFC
152	Nicaragua	9	0	0	27	11	1	15	43	46	−3	34	1.259	CONCACAF
153	Samoa Western Samoa	7	0	0	31	11	1	19	42	104	−62	34	1.097	OFC
154	Luxembourg	21	0	0	142	8	10	124	77	451	−374	34	0.239	UEFA
155	Burundi	8	0	0	26	9	6	11	27	34	−7	33	1.269	CAF
156	Guyana	12	0	0	40	9	6	25	43	92	−49	33	0.825	CONCACAF
157	Puerto Rico	11	0	0	31	8	8	15	40	57	−17	32	1.032	CONCACAF
158	Equatorial Guinea	7	0	0	32	9	5	18	26	49	−23	32	1.000	CAF
159	Faroe Islands	8	0	0	80	8	8	64	41	207	−166	32	0.400	UEFA
160	Maldives	8	0	0	42	9	4	29	45	143	−98	31	0.738	AFC
161	Belize	8	0	0	31	8	6	17	38	66	−28	30	0.968	CONCACAF
162	Grenada	9	0	0	31	8	4	19	53	64	−11	28	0.903	CONCACAF
163	Moldova	7	0	0	68	5	13	50	40	145	−105	28	0.412	UEFA
164	Chinese Taipei Republic of China	13	0	0	74	8	4	62	48	251	−203	28	0.378	AFC
165	Gambia	10	0	0	30	7	6	17	30	48	−18	27	0.900	CAF
166	Philippines	6	0	0	35	7	6	22	31	82	−51	27	0.771	AFC
167	Afghanistan	6	0	0	30	7	6	17	20	74	−54	27	0.900	AFC
168	Nepal	9	0	0	46	7	6	33	31	143	−112	27	0.587	AFC
169	Guinea-Bissau	8	0	0	24	5	10	9	19	33	−14	25	1.042	CAF
170	Tonga	7	0	0	24	8	1	15	27	85	−58	25	1.042	OFC
171	Saint Lucia	8	0	0	26	7	2	17	35	66	−31	23	0.885	CONCACAF
172	Myanmar	5	0	0	30	6	4	20	25	102	−77	22	0.733	AFC
173	Lesotho	9	0	0	30	3	12	15	18	54	−36	21	0.700	CAF
174	Malta	13	0	0	112	3	12	97	42	330	−288	21	0.188	UEFA
175	Chad	7	0	0	22	6	2	14	17	35	−18	20	0.909	CAF
176	Mongolia	7	0	0	26	6	1	19	17	77	−60	19	0.731	AFC
177	Sri Lanka	9	0	0	41	4	7	30	27	103	−76	19	0.463	AFC
178	Eswatini Swaziland	9	0	0	25	4	5	16	17	47	−30	17	0.680	CAF
179	Aruba	8	0	0	22	5	2	15	28	65	−37	17	0.773	CONCACAF
180	Dominica	8	0	0	26	4	5	17	22	67	−45	17	0.654	CONCACAF
181	Cambodia	7	0	0	38	4	5	29	22	136	−114	17	0.447	AFC
182	Bahamas	7	0	0	20	4	4	12	21	66	−45	16	0.800	CONCACAF
183	Macau	11	0	0	39	4	3	32	17	173	−156	15	0.385	AFC
184	Andorra	6	0	0	62	4	3	55	22	186	−164	15	0.242	UEFA
185	Laos	6	0	0	30	3	5	22	24	127	−103	14	0.467	AFC
186	Comoros	5	0	0	14	3	4	7	13	25	−12	13	0.929	CAF
187	Liechtenstein	7	0	0	70	2	7	61	25	219	−194	13	0.186	UEFA
188	Central African Republic	5	0	0	20	3	3	14	19	39	−20	12	0.600	CAF
189	Mauritania	8	0	0	26	2	6	18	15	47	−32	12	0.462	CAF
190	Bhutan	3	0	0	14	4	0	10	11	62	−51	12	0.857	AFC
191	U.S. Virgin Islands	7	0	0	21	3	2	16	9	96	−87	11	0.524	CONCACAF
192	Mauritius	9	0	0	24	2	4	18	17	58	−41	10	0.417	CAF
193	Cook Islands	7	0	0	21	3	1	17	17	66	−49	10	0.476	OFC
194	Guam	4	0	0	22	3	1	18	11	87	−76	10	0.455	AFC
195	American Samoa	6	0	0	19	3	1	15	11	138	−127	10	0.526	OFC
196	Montserrat	7	0	0	15	2	3	10	19	56	−37	9	0.600	CONCACAF
197	Cayman Islands	8	0	0	22	1	6	15	9	56	−47	9	0.409	CONCACAF
198	Djibouti	6	0	0	25	2	3	20	14	96	−82	9	0.360	CAF
199	Pakistan	10	0	0	40	1	5	34	15	148	−133	8	0.200	AFC
200	São Tomé and Príncipe	6	0	0	14	2	1	11	6	35	−29	7	0.500	CAF
201	Kosovo	2	0	0	18	1	3	14	8	39	−31	6	0.333	UEFA
202	Somalia	8	0	0	17	1	3	13	6	38	−32	6	0.353	CAF
203	Brunei	5	0	0	18	2	0	16	5	74	−69	6	0.333	AFC
204	British Virgin Islands	7	0	0	18	0	5	13	8	61	−53	5	0.278	CONCACAF
205	Turks and Caicos Islands	7	0	0	15	1	2	12	7	69	−62	5	0.333	CONCACAF
206	Saar	1	0	0	4	1	1	2	4	8	−4	4	1.000	defunct
207	South Sudan	3	0	0	8	0	4	4	3	15	−12	4	0.500	CAF
208	Eritrea	5	0	0	10	0	3	7	4	20	−16	3	0.300	CAF
209	Anguilla	7	0	0	18	0	3	15	3	77	−74	3	0.167	CONCACAF
210	Seychelles	7	0	0	20	0	2	18	8	68	−60	2	0.100	CAF
211	San Marino	8	0	0	76	0	2	74	12	356	−344	2	0.026	UEFA
212	South Yemen	1	0	0	2	0	1	1	4	7	−3	1	0.500	defunct
213	Tuvalu	1	0	0	4	0	1	3	2	22	−20	1	0.250	OFC
214	Timor-Leste	5	0	0	18	0	0	18	6	87	−81	0	0.000	AFC
215	Gibraltar	2	0	0	20	0	0	20	7	90	−83	0	0.000	UEFA

All-time top scorers

[edit]

As of 18 November 2025^[2]

Active players are highlighted inbold.

Rank	Player	Goals	Apps
1	Cristiano Ronaldo	41	52
2	Carlos Ruiz	39	47
3	Lionel Messi	36	72
4	Ali Daei	35	51
5	Robert Lewandowski	34	44
6	Edin Džeko	30	44
7	Chris Wood	29	31
8	Sardar Azmoun	29	41
9	Luis Suárez	29	64
10	Karim Bagheri	28	29
11	Kazuyoshi Miura	27	25
12	Ali Mabkhout	26	33
13	Andriy Shevchenko	26	40
14	Harry Kane	25	22
15	Tim Cahill	25	37
16	Carlos Pavón	25	37
17	Mehdi Taremi	24	44
18	Memphis Depay	23	23
19	Jared Borgetti	23	24
20	Heung-Min Son	23	47

Qualification tournament rules

[edit]

Qualification tournaments generally consist of a number of stages, made up of groups or knock-out ties.

Groups

[edit]

In all group tournaments, three points are awarded for a win, one for a draw, and none for a loss. FIFA has set the order of the tie-breakers for teams that finish level on points:

goal difference in all group matches
greater number of goals scored in all group matches

Where teams are still not able to be separated, the following tie-breakers are used:

greater number of points obtained in matches between the tied teams
goal difference in matches between the tied teams
greater number of goals scored in matches between the tied teams
goals scored away from home in matches between the tied teams, if the tie is only between two teams

Where teams are still equal, then a play-off on neutral ground, with extra time and penalties if necessary will be played if FIFA deems such a play-off able to be fitted within the coordinated international match calendar. If this is not deemed feasible, then the result will be determined by fair play points and then the drawing of lots.

Note that this order of tie-breaker application has not always been applied. While it was used in the 2010 qualifiers, the qualification for the 2006 World Cup used the head-to-head comparison prior to goal difference (although this system was – where applicable – used in the 2006 finals themselves). If these rules had applied in 2006, thenNigeria would have qualified rather thanAngola.

Home-and-away ties

[edit]

Most knock-out qualifiers (such as the inter-confederation play-offs and many preliminary ties) are played over two legs. The team that scores a greater aggregate number of goals qualifies. Away goals rule applies. If these rules fail to determine the winner,extra time andpenalty shootouts are used.

Occasionally – usually when one entrant lacks adequate facilities to host international matches – ties are played over a single leg, in which case matches level after 90 minutes will go to extra time and then to a penalty shootout if required.

Alternatively, "home" matches can be played in neutral countries, or occasionally one team will host both matches. In the latter case the visiting team will still be considered as the "home" team for one of the legs – which may determine which side advances under the away goals rule, as occurred inCONCACAF qualification in 2010.

References

[edit]

^"Sweden vs Estonia, 11 June 1933, World Cup qualification". eu-football.info. Retrieved25 January 2023.
^"Top goalscorers in World Cup qualifying history".FIFA. 14 October 2025. Retrieved16 October 2025.

External links

[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related toQualification for the FIFA World Cup.

History of the FIFA World Cup preliminary competition (by year). Published by FIFA in November 2009; archived from the original byWayback Machine on 23 October 2013.
FIFA World Cup Preliminary Competition Statistics (PDF) (archived 31 October 2008)
FIFA World Cup Preliminary History (PDF) (archived 2 September 2009)
FIFA World Cup 2022 Regulations
FIFA – official documents

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Fédération internationale de football association (FIFA)
Tournaments	Uruguay 1930 Italy 1934 France 1938 Brazil 1950 Switzerland 1954 Sweden 1958 Chile 1962 England 1966 Mexico 1970 West Germany 1974 Argentina 1978 Spain 1982 Mexico 1986 Italy 1990 United States 1994 France 1998 South Korea / Japan 2002 Germany 2006 South Africa 2010 Brazil 2014 Russia 2018 Qatar 2022 Canada / Mexico / United States 2026 Morocco / Portugal / Spain 2030¹ Saudi Arabia 2034
Qualification	1930² 1934 1938 1950 1954 1958 1962 1966 1970 1974 1978 1982 1986 1990 1994 1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 2018 2022 2026
Finals	1930 1934 1938 1950³ 1954 1958 1962 1966 1970 1974 1978 1982 1986 1990 1994 1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 2018 2022 2026
Squads	1930 1934 1938 1950 1954 1958 1962 1966 1970 1974 1978 1982 1986 1990 1994 1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 2018 2022
Final draw	1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 2018 2022 2026
Broadcasters	1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 2018 2022 2026
Bids	2014 2018 2022 2026 2030 2034
Officials	2010 2014 2018 2022
Team appearances	AFC CAF CONCACAF CONMEBOL OFC UEFA
Other records	Overall records and statistics Player records winners top appearances red cards Goalscorer records top finals hat-tricks own goals Manager records winners all appearances Match records opening penalty shoot-outs
Miscellaneous	Awards Balls Controversies Economics Fan Festival Films History Mascots Music Notable matches nicknamed qualifying Referees Stadiums finals Trophy Video games World Champions Cup
¹ Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay will host the inaugural games ² There was no qualification for the 1930 World Cup as places were given by invitation only. ³ No final held; the article is about the decisive match of the final group stage. Category Commons

v t e Countries at theFIFA World Cup
Team appearances All-time table
AFC	Australia¹ China Indonesia² Iran Iraq Japan Jordan Kuwait North Korea Qatar Saudi Arabia South Korea United Arab Emirates Uzbekistan²
CAF	Algeria Angola Cameroon Cape Verde DR Congo² Egypt Ghana Ivory Coast Morocco Nigeria Senegal South Africa Togo Tunisia
CONCACAF	Canada Costa Rica Cuba Curaçao El Salvador Haiti Honduras Jamaica Mexico Panama Trinidad and Tobago United States
CONMEBOL	Argentina Bolivia Brazil Chile Colombia Ecuador Paraguay Peru Uruguay
OFC	New Zealand
UEFA	Austria Belgium Bosnia and Herzegovina Bulgaria Croatia Czech Republic² Denmark East Germany³ England France Germany² Greece Hungary Iceland Israel¹ Italy Netherlands Northern Ireland Norway Poland Portugal Republic of Ireland Romania Russia² Scotland Serbia² Slovakia² Slovenia Spain Sweden Switzerland Turkey Ukraine² Wales
¹ Have been member of multiple confederations.² Considered a successor team by FIFA, or have competed under another name(s).³ Team and national federation no longer exist.