A South American team was the first to qualify and another team from the same region was the last to complete the line-up for the 2014 Fifa World Cup.

While Brazil were the first by virtue of being hosts, Uruguay became the final team to qualify for the 2014 Fifa World Cup on Wednesday after grinding out a 0-0 draw in a gritty battle with Jordan. But the Uruguayans did the job in the first leg in Amman last week with a 5-0 thrashing of the Jordanians.

With 52 nations in the running, the battle for the five World Cup slots was always going to be a bruising one. Some big names fell by the way side. 2010 World Cup host South Africa were among them as they failed to clear the Ethiopia hurdle in the final group stage match.

Once the dust had settled down, it was the usual suspects who secured tickets to Brazil. The final draw will be conducted on December 6.

Qualified Teams

Africa

• Algeria (ALG)
• Cameroon (CMR)
• Côte d’Ivoire (CIV)
• Ghana (GHA)
• Nigeria (NGA) 

Asia

Like Africa, Asia had a large number competing for very few slots. A confederation with 43 members only had four and half places to fight for.

The top two teams from each group directly qualified for the 2014 World Cup. Then two third-placed sides had to compete in a two-legged tie for the chance to contest in an Intercontinental Play-Off.

• Australia (AUS)
• Iran (IRN)
• Japan (JPN)
• Korea Republic (KOR) 

Europe

The lion’s share of the World Cup teams come from Europe and it is no wonder they continue to dominate at this global spectacle. Competition for 13 places was tough among the 53 nations and went down to the wire for some – read France, Portugal.

• Belgium (BEL)
• Bosnia-Herzegovina (BIH)
• Croatia (CRO)
• England (ENG)
• France (FRA)
• Germany (GER)
• Greece (GRE)
• Italy (ITA)
• Netherlands (NED)
• Portugal (POR)
• Russia (RUS)
• Spain (ESP)
• Switzerland (SUI)

North, Central America and Caribbean

Three and half spots were up for grabs for the region’s 35 teams. The final hexagonal round ran until September 2013, with the three top teams being directly qualified for the FIFA World Cup. The fourth-placed side Mexico entered into an Intercontinental Play-Off against New Zealand.

• Costa Rica (CRC)
• Honduras (HON)
• Mexico (MEX)
• USA (USA) 

Oceania

New Zealand won the qualification in Oceania and had to play playoff against the fourth placed team from North, Central America and the Caribbean – Mexico. The Mexicans were ruthless as they hammered the Kiwis 4-2 in the second leg to seal qualification.

South America

With Brazil automatically qualified as hosts, the remaining nine member associations will play each other on a home and away basis for 4.5 spots between October 2011 and September 2013.

• Argentina (ARG)
• Brazil (BRA)
• Chile (CHI)
• Colombia (COL)
• Ecuador (ECU)
• Uruguay (URU)

Source: Supersport

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