After a qualification process involving 209 national football teams and lasting for more than two years, the list of the 32 sides to take part in the FIFA World Cup 2018 in Russia has been confirmed, after Peru booked the 32nd and last place at next summer’s tournament.
Each continent is to be represented at the tournament with five teams from Africa, 13 from Europe, four from Asia, five from South America, one from Oceania, three from North and Central America and Caribbean and the host nation.
The teams have been seeded according to the October 2017 FIFA world rankings. The seven highest-ranked teams are pot 1, the next eight in pot two, the following eight in pot three and the lowest ranked eight in pot four.
One team from each pot is drawn into a group, making eight groups of four nations. There can be no more than two teams from Europe in any one pot, and no more than one nation from any other confederation.
The Final Draw will take place on Friday 1 December at Moscow’s State Kremlin Palace in Russia.
Pot 1: Russia, Germany, Brazil, Portugal, Argentina, Belgium, Poland, France
Pot 2: Spain, Peru, Switzerland, England, Colombia, Mexico, Uruguay, Croatia
Pot 3: Denmark, Iceland, Costa Rica, Sweden, Tunisia, Egypt, Senegal, Iran
Pot 4: Serbia, Nigeria, Australia, Japan, Morocco, Panama, South Korea, Saudi Arabia
