# 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification

The 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification competition was a series of tournaments organised by the six FIFA confederations. Each confederation — the AFC (Asia), CAF (Africa), CONCACAF (North, Central America and Caribbean), CONMEBOL (South America), OFC (Oceania), and UEFA (Europe) — was allocated a certain number of the 32 places at the tournament. 199 teams entered the tournament qualification rounds, competing for 32 spots in the final tournament. South Korea and Japan, as the co-hosts, and France, as the defending champions, qualified automatically, leaving 29 spots open for competition.

## Qualified teams

| Team | Method of qualification | Date of qualification | Finals appearance | Last appearance | Consecutive finals appearances | Previous best performance | FIFA ranking at start of event |
| Japan | Co-hosts | 31 May 1996 | 2nd | 1998 | 2 | Group stage (1998) | 32 |
| South Korea | Co-hosts | 31 May 1996 | 6th | 1998 | 5 | Group stage (1954, 1986, 1990, 1994, 1998) | 40 |
| France | Defending Champions | 12 July 1998 | 11th | 1998 | 2 | Winners (1998) | 1 |
| Cameroon | CAF final round group A winners | 1 July 2001 | 5th | 1998 | 4 | Quarter-finals (1990) | 17 |
| South Africa | CAF final round group E winners | 1 July 2001 | 2nd | 1998 | 2 | Group stage (1998) | 37 |
| Tunisia | CAF final round group D winners | 15 July 2001 | 3rd | 1998 | 2 | Group stage (1978, 1998) | 31 |
| Senegal | CAF final round group C winners | 21 July 2001 | 1st | — | 1 | — | 42 |
| Nigeria | CAF final round group B winners | 29 July 2001 | 3rd | 1998 | 3 | Round of 16 (1994, 1998) | 27 |
| Argentina | CONMEBOL winners | 15 August 2001 | 13th | 1998 | 8 | Winners (1978, 1986) | 3 |
| Poland | UEFA Group 5 winners | 1 September 2001 | 6th | 1986 | 1 | Third place (1974, 1982) | 38 |
| Sweden | UEFA Group 4 winners | 5 September 2001 | 10th | 1994 | 1 | Runners-up (1958) | 19 |
| Spain | UEFA Group 7 winners | 5 September 2001 | 11th | 1998 | 7 | Fourth place (1950) | 8 |
| Costa Rica | CONCACAF final round winners | 5 September 2001 | 2nd | 1990 | 1 | Round of 16 (1990) | 29 |
| Russia | UEFA Group 1 winners | 6 October 2001 | 9th | 1994 | 1 | Fourth place (1966) | 28 |
| Portugal | UEFA Group 2 winners | 6 October 2001 | 3rd | 1986 | 1 | Third place (1966) | 5 |
| Denmark | UEFA Group 3 winners | 6 October 2001 | 3rd | 1998 | 2 | Quarter-finals (1998) | 20 |
| Croatia | UEFA Group 6 winners | 6 October 2001 | 2nd | 1998 | 2 | Third place (1998) | 21 |
| Italy | UEFA Group 8 winners | 6 October 2001 | 15th | 1998 | 11 | Winners (1934, 1938, 1982) | 6 |
| England | UEFA Group 9 winners | 6 October 2001 | 11th | 1998 | 2 | Winners (1966) | 12 |
| China | AFC second round Group B winners | 7 October 2001 | 1st | — | 1 | — | 50 |
| United States | CONCACAF final round runners-up | 7 October 2001 | 7th | 1998 | 4 | Third place (1930) | 13 |
| Saudi Arabia | AFC second round Group A winners | 21 October 2001 | 3rd | 1998 | 3 | Round of 16 (1994) | 34 |
| Ecuador | CONMEBOL runners-up | 7 November 2001 | 1st | — | 1 | — | 36 |
| Paraguay | CONMEBOL 4th place | 8 November 2001 | 6th | 1998 | 2 | Round of 16 (1986, 1998) | 18 |
| Mexico | CONCACAF final round 3rd place | 11 November 2001 | 12th | 1998 | 3 | Quarter-finals (1970, 1986) | 7 |
| Belgium | UEFA play-off winners | 14 November 2001 | 11th | 1998 | 6 | Fourth place (1986) | 23 |
| Germany | UEFA play-off winners | 14 November 2001 | 15th | 1998 | 12 | Winners (1954, 1974, 1990) | 11 |
| Slovenia | UEFA play-off winners | 14 November 2001 | 1st | — | 1 | — | 25 |
| Turkey | UEFA play-off winners | 14 November 2001 | 2nd | 1954 | 1 | Group stage (1954) | 22 |
| Brazil | CONMEBOL 3rd place | 14 November 2001 | 17th | 1998 | 17 | Winners (1958, 1962, 1970, 1994) | 2 |
| Republic of Ireland | UEFA-AFC play-off winners | 15 November 2001 | 3rd | 1994 | 1 | Quarter-finals (1990) | 15 |
| Uruguay | CONMEBOL v OFC play-off winners | 25 November 2001 | 10th | 1990 | 1 | Winners (1930, 1950) | 24 |

## Qualification process

The 32 spots available in the 2002 World Cup would be distributed among the continental zones as follows:
* Europe (UEFA): 14.5 places, 1 of them went to automatic qualifier France, while the other 13.5 places were contested by 50 teams. The winner of the 0.5 place would advance to the intercontinental play-offs (against a team from AFC)
* South America (CONMEBOL): 4.5 places, contested by 10 teams. The winner of the 0.5 place would advance to the intercontinental play-offs (against a team from OFC).
* North, Central America and Caribbean (CONCACAF): 3 places, contested by 35 teams.
* Africa (CAF): 5 places, contested by 51 teams.
* Asia (AFC): 4.5 places, 2 of them went to automatic qualifiers South Korea and Japan, while the other 2.5 places were contested by 40 teams. The winner of the 0.5 place would advance to the intercontinental play-offs (against a team from UEFA).
* Oceania (OFC): 0.5 place, contested by 10 teams. The winner of the 0.5 place would advance to the intercontinental play-offs (against a team from CONMEBOL).
A total of 193 teams played at least one qualifying match. A total of 777 qualifying matches were played, and 2452 goals were scored (an average of 3.17 per match).

### Summary of qualification

Qualifying end date :
| AFC | 2+2 or 3+2 | 39+2 | 37 | 2+2 | 24 November 2000 | 15 November 2001 |
| CAF | 5 | 50 | 45 | 5 | 7 April 2000 | 29 July 2001 |
| CONCACAF | 3 | 34 | 31 | 3 | 4 March 2000 | 11 November 2001 |
| CONMEBOL | 4 or 5 | 10 | 5 | 5 | 28 March 2000 | 25 November 2001 |
| OFC | 0 or 1 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 7 April 2001 | 25 November 2001 |
| UEFA | 13+1 or 14+1 | 50+1 | 36 | 14+1 | 16 August 2000 | 15 November 2001 |
| Total | 29+3 | 193+3 | 164 | 29+3 | 4 March 2000 | 25 November 2001 |

## Confederation qualification
### AFC

The Asian Football Confederation was allocated four and half qualifying berths for the 2002 FIFA World Cup, South Korea and Japan, the co-hosts, qualified automatically, leaving two and half spots open for competition between 40 teams. Myanmar withdrew from the tournament after being placed in group 2 but before any matches had been played, therefore reducing the group to three teams.
Afghanistan, Bhutan and North Korea chose not to participate.
Asia's two remaining automatic qualifying berths were taken by Saudi Arabia and China. Iran lost their AFC–UEFA playoff against the Republic of Ireland.
There were three rounds of play:
* First round: The 39 teams were divided into nine groups of four teams each, and one group of three teams. The teams played against each other twice, except in group 2, where the teams played against each other once. The group winners advanced to the final round.
* Second round: The ten group winners from the first round were divided into two groups of five teams. The teams played against each other on a home-and-away basis. The group winners qualified directly to the World Cup. The runners-up advanced to the AFC play-off.
* Play-off: The two group runners-up from the second round played against each other on a home-and-away basis. The winner advanced to the UEFA–AFC inter-confederation play-off.

#### Final positions (second round)

| Group A | Group B |
| Pos Teamvte Pld Pts 1  Saudi Arabia 8 17 2  Iran 8 15 3  Bahrain 8 10 4  Iraq 8 7 5  Thailand 8 4 Source: | Pos Teamvte Pld Pts 1  China 8 19 2  United Arab Emirates 8 11 3  Uzbekistan 8 10 4  Qatar 8 9 5  Oman 8 6 Source: |

#### AFC play-off

| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Iran | 4–0 | United Arab Emirates | 1–0 | 3–0 |

### CAF

The Confederation of African Football was allocated five qualifying berths for the 2002 FIFA World Cup. 51 teams entered the qualification process.
Burundi withdrew before the draw was made while Niger and Comoros chose not to participate.
Guinea was excluded from the competition during the final round for government interference with its national association, resulting in their results obtained in the final round being annulled.
Africa's five automatic qualifying berths were taken by Cameroon, Senegal, Tunisia, South Africa, and Nigeria.
There were two rounds of play:
* First round: The 50 teams were divided into five pools of ten teams each. In each pool, the 10 teams were paired up to play knockout matches on a home-and-away basis. The winners advanced to the second round.
* Second round: The 25 teams were divided into five groups of five teams each. The teams played against each other on a home-and-away basis. The group winners qualified.

#### Final positions (second round)

| Group A | Group B | Group C |
| Pos Teamvte Pld Pts 1  Cameroon 8 19 2  Angola 8 13 3  Zambia 8 11 4  Togo 8 9 5  Libya 8 2 Source: | Pos Teamvte Pld Pts 1  Nigeria 8 16 2  Liberia 8 15 3  Sudan 8 12 4  Ghana 8 11 5  Sierra Leone 8 4 Source: | Pos Teamvte Pld Pts 1  Senegal 8 15 2  Morocco 8 15 3  Egypt 8 13 4  Algeria 8 8 5  Namibia 8 2 Source: |
| Group D | Group E |
| Pos Teamvte Pld Pts 1  Tunisia 8 20 2  Ivory Coast 8 15 3  DR Congo 8 10 4  Madagascar 8 6 5  Congo 8 5 Source: | Pos Teamvte Pld Pts 1  South Africa 6 16 2  Zimbabwe 6 12 3  Burkina Faso 6 5 4  Malawi 6 1 5  Guinea 0 0 Source: |

### CONCACAF

A total of 35 CONCACAF teams entered the competition. Mexico, USA, Jamaica and Costa Rica, the four highest-ranked teams according to FIFA, received byes and advanced to the semi-finals, while Canada advanced to the play-offs . The remaining teams were divided into zones, based on geographical locations, as follows:
* Caribbean Zone: The 24 teams were divided into groups of eight teams each. The teams played in a three-round knockout tournament. The winners would advance to the semi-finals, while the runners-up would advance to the play-offs.
* Central American Zone: The six teams are divided into groups of three teams each. The teams played against each other. The winners of the group would advance to the semi-finals, while the runners-up would advance to the play-offs.
* Play-offs: the six teams were paired up to play knockout matches on a home-and-away basis. A team from North or Central America would play against a team from the Caribbean, and the winners would advance to the semi-finals.
* Semi-finals: the 12 teams were divided into three groups of four teams each. They played against each other on a home-and-away basis. The group winners and runners-up would advance to the final round.
* Final round: the six teams played against each other on a home-and-away basis. The top three teams would qualify for the 2002 FIFA World Cup.
* Legend
* Countries that qualified for the 2002 World Cup

#### Final positions (final round)

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | Pts |
| 1 | Costa Rica | 10 | 23 |
| 2 | Mexico | 10 | 17 |
| 3 | United States | 10 | 17 |
| 4 | Honduras | 10 | 14 |
| 5 | Jamaica | 10 | 8 |
| 6 | Trinidad and Tobago | 10 | 5 |

### CONMEBOL

A total of 10 CONMEBOL teams entered the competition. competing for four and half places in the final tournament.
The 10 teams played against each other on a home-and-away basis. The top 4 teams qualified. The 5th-placed team advanced to the CONMEBOL / OFC Intercontinental play-off.
* Legend
* Countries that qualified for the 2002 World Cup

#### Final positions

| Team | Pld | Pts |
| Argentina | 18 | 43 |
| Ecuador | 18 | 31 |
| Brazil | 18 | 30 |
| Paraguay | 18 | 30 |
| Uruguay | 18 | 27 |
| Colombia | 18 | 27 |
| Bolivia | 18 | 18 |
| Peru | 18 | 16 |
| Venezuela | 18 | 16 |
| Chile | 18 | 12 |

### OFC

A total of 10 teams entered the competition. competing for a half place in the final tournament.
Papua New Guinea chose not to participate.
There would be two rounds of play:
* First round: The 10 teams were divided into two groups of five teams each. The teams played against each other once. The group winners would advance to the second round.
* Second round: The two teams played against each other on a home-and-away basis. The winner would advance to the CONMEBOL/OFC inter-continental play-off.
Australia's 31–0 win over American Samoa established a World Cup record for the highest margin of victory in a qualifying match.

#### Final positions (second round)

| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| New Zealand | 1–6 | Australia | 0–2 | 1–4 |

### UEFA

The European section acted as qualifiers for the 2002 FIFA World Cup, for national teams which are members of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). Apart from France, who qualified automatically as holders, a total of thirteen and half slots in the final tournament were available for UEFA teams.
The 50 teams were divided into nine groups, five groups of six teams and four groups of five teams. The teams played against each other on a home-and-away basis. The group winners would qualify. Among the runners-up, the runner-up of group 2 was drawn randomly to advance to the UEFA–AFC Intercontinental play-off. The other runners-up would advance to the UEFA play-offs.
In the play-offs, the eight teams were paired up to play knockout matches on a home-and-away basis. The four aggregate winners qualified. The qualifying process started on 2 September 2000, after UEFA Euro 2000, and ended on 14 November 2001.
The Netherlands and Romania both failed to qualify for the tournament for the first time since 1986, the former finishing third in group 2 behind Portugal and Republic of Ireland and the latter suffering a shock loss to Slovenia in the play-offs.
* Legend
* Countries that qualified for the 2002 World Cup
* Countries that advanced to the Play-offs

#### Final positions (first round)

| Group 1 | Group 2 | Group 3 |
| Team Pld Pts  Russia 1023  Slovenia 1020  FR Yugoslavia 1019  Switzerland 1014  Faroe Islands 107  Luxembourg 100 | Team Pld Pts  Portugal 1024  Republic of Ireland 1024  Netherlands 1020  Cyprus 108  Estonia 108  Andorra 100 | Team Pld Pts  Denmark 1022  Czech Republic 1020  Bulgaria 1017  Iceland 1013  Northern Ireland 1011  Malta 101 |
| Group 4 | Group 5 | Group 6 |
| Team Pld Pts  Sweden 1026  Turkey 1021  Slovakia 1017  Macedonia 107  Moldova 106  Azerbaijan 105 | Team Pld Pts  Poland 1021  Ukraine 1017  Belarus 1015  Norway 1010  Wales 109  Armenia 105 | Team Pld Pts  Croatia 818  Belgium 817  Scotland 815  Latvia 84  San Marino 81 |
| Group 7 | Group 8 | Group 9 |
| Team Pld Pts  Spain 820  Austria 815  Israel 812  Bosnia and Herzegovina 88  Liechtenstein 80 | Team Pld Pts  Italy 820  Romania 816  Georgia 810  Hungary 88  Lithuania 82 | Team Pld Pts  England 817  Germany 817  Finland 812  Greece 87  Albania 83 |

#### Play-offs

| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Belgium | 2–0 | Czech Republic | 1–0 | 1–0 |
| Ukraine | 2–5 | Germany | 1–1 | 1–4 |
| Slovenia | 3–2 | Romania | 2–1 | 1–1 |
| Austria | 0–6 | Turkey | 0–1 | 0–5 |

## Inter-confederation play-offs

There were two scheduled inter-confederation playoffs to determine the final two qualification spots to the finals. The first legs were played on 10 and 20 November 2001, and the second legs were played on 15 and 25 November 2001.

### UEFA v AFC

| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Republic of Ireland | 2–1 | Iran | 2–0 | 0–1 |

### OFC v CONMEBOL

| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Australia | 1–3 | Uruguay | 1–0 | 0–3 |

## Top goalscorers

There were 2,452 goals scored in 777 matches, for an average of 3.16 goals per match.
16 goals
* Archie Thompson
15 goals
* Carlos Pavón
14 goals
* David Zdrilic
11 goals
* Golman Pierre
* Ibrahima Bakayoko
* Hani Al-Dhabit
* Yaqoob Juma Al-Mukhaini
* Talal Al-Meshal
* Said Bayazid
10 goals
* Rolando Fonseca
* Ali Daei
* Obeid Al-Dosari
* Kiatisuk Senamuang
* Andriy Shevchenko
* Yaser Salem Ali
* Jafar Irismetov
Below are goalscorer lists for all confederations and the inter-confederation play-offs:
* AFC
* CAF
* CONCACAF
* CONMEBOL
* OFC
* UEFA
* Inter-confederation play-offs

## Trivia

* On their way to the 2002 World Cup, Brazil endured their worst qualifying campaign ever, losing 6 matches (the only time they have lost more than 2 games in a qualifying campaign) and finishing 3rd of the South American qualifying group (the only time they have not emerged as leaders of their qualifying group). However, Brazil went on to win the 2002 World Cup with a record-breaking tally of 7 wins in 7 matches in the final competition, without facing extra time or penalty shoot-outs. The following teams also won all their final competition matches: Uruguay in 1930 (4 games), Italy in 1938 (4 games, 1 of which after extra time), Brazil in 1970 (6 games) and France in 1998 (7 games, of which 1 with a golden goal during extra time and 1 on penalties). In 1970, Brazil had also won all of their 6 preliminary competition matches. Uruguay did not play any preliminary round for 1930, as there was none, and Italy did not either for 1938 as they were automatically qualified for the World Cup as title holders.
* After finishing second in the group, where they famously lost 1–5 to England, Germany had to play qualifying play-offs for the only time in their history.
* Australia netted 31 goals against newcomers American Samoa, setting the record of the highest-scoring match and biggest margin of victory in an international match ever. This was only two days after Australia thrashed Tonga 22–0, a then international record. Also, Archie Thompson's 13 goals in the match against American Samoa surpassed the previous record of 10.
* Souleymane Mamam of Togo became the youngest player ever to play in a World Cup qualifying match at the age of 13 years and 310 days in the match against Zambia, in May 2001. He subbed in for Komlan Assignon, three minutes from full-time.
* The fastest-ever hat-trick in an "A" international was set when Abdul Hamid Bassiouny of Egypt needed only 177 seconds to bag his three goals in a game against Namibia.
* Switzerland's Kubilay Türkyilmaz scored a hat trick exclusively from penalties against the Faroe Islands. Brazil's Ronaldo would equal this against Argentina in his team's 3–1 win in the 2006 World Cup qualifying round.