International qualifiers are where national teams face each other in a bid to secure a place at a major tournament, like the World Cup. The process is often lengthy, and many of the best nations in the world are locked in a battle to reach the finals. Prolific strikers, such as Harry Kane and Romelu Lukaku, are crucial to their country’s chances of qualifying.
Generally, the highest-ranked team in each confederation receives automatic qualification to the World Cup, while the remaining places are decided through a series of play-offs. The qualifying process is long and complex, but the rewards for those who emerge victorious are huge.
The first step in qualifying is the group stage, where UEFA member nations are drawn into groups of four or more teams. The winners of each group qualify for the World Cup while the runners-up advance to the intercontinental play-offs.
In the second round, 30 teams – the two group winners and 28 highest-ranked non-UEFA nations not already qualified for the finals – were split into six groups of five teams to play single round-robin home-and-away matches. The two best-ranked runners-up will then progress to the interconfederation play-offs.
In the third and final round, the top three teams will automatically qualify for the World Cup, while the remaining places are again determined through play-offs. The highest-ranked teams in the Oceanic region are expected to enter the intercontinental play-offs, which will feature one team from each of FIFA’s four confederations and the host nation.