1978 FIFA World Cup qualification
A total of 107 teams entered the 1978 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds, which began with the preliminary qualification draw on 20 November 1975 at Guatemala City. Argentina, as the hosts, and West Germany, as the defending champions, qualified automatically, leaving 14 spots open for competition. The 16 places would be distributed among the continental zones as follows: A total of 95 teams played at least one qualifying match. A total of 252 qualifying matches were played, and 723 goals were scored (an average of 2.87 per match). Continental Zones. To see the dates and  results of the qualification rounds for each continental zone, click on the following articles: Europe. UEFA Group 1. <onlyinclude></onlyinclude> Poland qualified. UEFA Group 2. <onlyinclude></onlyinclude> Italy qualified. UEFA Group 3. <onlyinclude></onlyinclude> Austria qualified. UEFA Group 4. <onlyinclude></onlyinclude> Netherlands qualified. UEFA Group 5. <onlyinclude></onlyinclude> France qualified. UEFA Group 6. <onlyinclude></onlyinclude> Sweden qualified. UEFA Group 7. <onlyinclude></onlyinclude> Scotland qualified. UEFA Group 8. <onlyinclude></onlyinclude> Spain qualified. UEFA Group 9. <onlyinclude></onlyinclude> Hungary advanced to the UEFA–CONMEBOL play-off. South America. CONMEBOL First round. Group 1 . Brazil advanced to the Final Round. Group 2. Bolivia advanced to the Final Round. Group 3. Peru advanced to the Final Round. CONMEBOL Final round. Brazil and Peru qualified. Bolivia advanced to the UEFA / CONMEBOL Intercontinental Play-off. North, Central America and Caribbean. Decided by 1977 CONCACAF Championship. Inter-confederation play-offs: UEFA v CONMEBOL. The teams would play against each other on a home-and-away basis. The winner would qualify. <onlyinclude> </onlyinclude> Qualified teams. The following 16 teams qualified for the 1978 FIFA World Cup: