International qualifiers are the contests – usually over two legs – that determine which teams will compete in the World Cup, FIFA Confederation Championships and other major international tournaments. The qualifiers are organized in the six regional zones that make up FIFA’s continental structure – Africa, Asia, Europe, North and Central America and the Caribbean, South America and Oceania – and are run by the respective footballing bodies responsible for those territories.
The expansion of the World Cup to 48 teams has brought with it changes to qualification formats around the world, with all entrants now drawn into groups of four and playing traditional home-and-away round-robin fixtures. The 12 group winners qualify directly for the tournament, with the remaining four berths awarded to teams in inter-confederation play-offs.
Despite the new qualification format, top nations are still feeling the heat. In CONMEBOL, for example, Brazil’s 2-0 defeat to Venezuela in Caracas on Tuesday left them on the edge of the automatic qualification zone in sixth place, and they could drop out if Bolivia win both of their remaining matches and don’t lose at altitude against Colombia. But a 1-0 home victory over Uruguay on Thursday and a draw in Bolivia will see them comfortably through to the top four, with a spot in the Intercontinental Playoff at the very least. It’s a welcome relief for Carlo Ancelotti, who is set to be named as the next Brazil coach following an uncharacteristically shaky qualifying campaign.