WEEKLY WHINE
Here at GoobNet, we’re always on the lookout for ways to improve the world. For example, this week, we noticed that the qualifiers for the 2010 Men’s World Cup just began last weekend. And to that we say: The hell?
Yes, patience is a good quality in all walks of life. But that doesn’t mean it makes sense for the winner of the OFC final round to wait over a year until their playoff against the fifth placed AFC team.
The qualifying structures on which the various confederations have decided are, for the most part, decent. It’s just that they would only work if there were twice as many international dates as there are. And that means it’s time for the GoobNet Special Projects Enhancement and Enforcement Division [SPEED] to swoop in and fix the qualifiers. Here now is the updated qualifying procedure and schedule that is to take effect immediately. Sepp Blatter, you don’t have to thank us. You can just pretend it was your idea all along.
By the way, you may note that this requires annulling the qualifiers that have already been played. American Samoa, you don’t have to thank us. You can just pretend it was your idea all along.
Union of European Football Associations
Teams entered: 53
Places: 13
Current format: One group phase with nine groups. Eight of the groups have six teams, the other has five. The winner of each group qualifies directly; the top eight second placed teams play off in pairs for the remaining four places. Matches begin on WED 20 AUG 2008.
Current match dates required: 12
Discussion on current format: Sounds good to us. It requires twelve match dates [ten in the group phase, two for the playoffs], and therefore it can easily be completed in the time available.
Proposed format: No change.
Proposed match dates required: 12
Proposed schedule: Teams may schedule their own group matches by mutual consent. Group matches shall be played on international dates between WED 20 AUG 2008 and WED 14 OCT 2009. The playoffs occur on the NOV 2009 international dates.
Confédération Africaine de Football
Teams entered: 52 [not including South Africa, who qualify automatically]
Places: 5 [not including South Africa]
Current format: An initial elimination phase with the ten lowest ranked teams. This is followed by two group phases; the winners of the final round groups qualify.
Current match dates required: 14
Discussion on current format: They’re starting in OCT 2007, and yet, based upon the number of matches required, they could just as easily start in SEP 2008. Furthermore, having them unified with the 2010 African Nations Cup qualifiers is particularly silly, especially since South Africa qualify automatically for the World Cup and not the Nations Cup, and Angola qualify automatically for the Nations Cup and not the World Cup.
Proposed format: First, separate the Nations Cup and World Cup qualifiers. The Nations Cup qualifiers shall be played in two elimination phases, leaving out Angola. The first phase involves 44 teams; these 22 winners join 8 byed teams in the second phase, where the 15 winners qualify. This requires only four match dates. Meanwhile, in the World Cup qualifiers, we play two elimination phases, with 24 teams in the first plus 28 teams byed into the second. The 20 winners of the second elimination phase end up in the group phase, played identically to the current final group phase, except that South Africa are not involved.
Proposed match dates required: 10 [World Cup], 4 [Nations Cup]
Proposed schedule: The elimination phases of the World Cup qualifiers are played on the full international dates in the second half of 2008. Then, the Nations Cup qualifiers are played on the first half of 2009’s full international dates. Finally, the group phase of the World Cup qualifiers is played on the full international dates in the second half of 2009.
Confederation of North/Central American and Caribbean Association Football
Teams entered: 35
Places: 3½ [playoff v CONMEBOL team]
Current format: An initial two round elimination phase, followed by two group phases; the last one is a single group with six teams with the top three qualifying and the fourth team going to the playoff.
Current match dates required: 22
Discussion on current format: CONCACAF is a problem, more so than the other confederations. This is mostly because 3½ is half of a prime number; if there were, for example, 4½ places, that would make an easy final round format [see the AFC, below]. But with 3½, we face the unsavory prospect of either a number of final playoffs with one of the CONMEBOL teams thrown in, or an intermediary playoff as in the current AFC format, or CONCACAF’s preference of a big final group.
Proposed format: We begin with a three round elimination phase. Six teams are in the first round; these three winners join 29 byed teams in the second round. Over the second and third rounds, the field is reduced to 16 and then 8. These eight teams play in two final round groups. Each group’s winner qualifies, and then the second placed teams play off. The winner also qualifies, and the loser plays off against a CONMEBOL team.
Proposed match dates required: 16
Proposed schedule: The first elimination round is played on the friendly dates in the first half of 2008. The elimination phase completes on the full international dates in the second half of 2008. The group phase occurs on the six full international dates of MAR-SEP 2009. The playoff between second placed teams is played on the international dates of OCT 2009. The CONCACAF/CONMEBOL playoff occurs on the NOV 2009 international dates.
Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol
Teams entered: 10
Places: 4½ [playoff v CONCACAF team]
Current format: A single group, with the top four qualifying directly and the fifth team progressing to the playoff.
Current match dates required: 20
Discussion on current format: Everybody loves this format, even though CONMEBOL are too lazy to hold a draw each time and just keep using the same schedule with Peru hosting Paraguay on the first day and Brazil hosting Venezuela on the last day. It is, however, a tremendous drain on the players and horribly inefficient, since it takes 18 match dates just to cut the field in half.
Proposed format: Let’s revert to a format like that used for the 1994 Men’s World Cup, with two groups. The top two in each group qualify. The third placed teams play off, and the winner enters the playoff against a CONCACAF team.
Proposed match dates required: 14
Proposed schedule: The group phase takes place on the full international dates from SEP 2008 to SEP 2009. The playoff between third placed teams is played on the international dates of OCT 2009. The CONCACAF/CONMEBOL playoff occurs on the NOV 2009 international dates.
Asian Football Confederation
Teams entered: 43 [including Guam, who have withdrawn]
Places: 4½ [playoff v OFC team]
Current format: Two elimination rounds, two group phases, and a playoff between third placed teams in the final groups prior to the AFC/OFC playoff.
Current match dates required: 22
Discussion on current format: Wrong, completely wrong. For starters, there is a confusing rule that states that the eleven highest seeded winners from the first elimination round go directly to the first group phase. Why not just give the higher seeded teams a bye into the second elimination round? In addition, the second group phase needlessly uses five team groups, which means two off dates for each team and an added inefficiency. If the second group phase used groups of six teams, that would mean the first group phase would have a field of 24, and only one elimination round would be necessary. This would actually reduce the total number of match dates to 20.
Proposed format: There is a two round elimination phase. The first round is identical to the current first elimination round, with 38 teams. The 19 winners would join five byed teams in the second elimination round, from which 12 would advance. Then, there is a group phase with three groups. The group winners qualify directly, and the second placed teams, along with the OFC winner, are drawn into playoffs for the last two places.
Proposed match dates required: 12
Proposed schedule: The elimination phase occurs on the full international dates in the second half of 2008. Teams in the group phase may schedule their own matches by mutual consent, on international dates of FEB-OCT 2009. The playoffs occur on the NOV 2009 international dates.
Oceania Football Confederation
Teams entered: 10
Places: ½ [playoff v AFC team]
Current format: The men’s football tournament at the 2007 South Pacific Games serves as the first round; the medal-winning teams advance to a group with New Zealand seeded. The winner of the group moves on to the playoff.
Current match dates required: 8 [not including South Pacific Games]
Discussion on current format: It’s as though FIFA called the OFC and said, “Umm... yeah. So if you could go ahead and sort of tell us your qualifying format for South Africa 2010, that’d be great.” And the OFC replied, “Oh shit! We need a qualifying format for South Africa 2010!”
Proposed format: Eight teams play in an elimination phase, and the four winners join two seeded teams in a group. The group winner enters the playoff against an AFC team.
Proposed match dates required: 14
Proposed schedule: The elimination phase occurs on the SEP 2008 international dates. Group phase matches are played on the full international dates from OCT 2008 to OCT 2009. The playoffs occur on the NOV 2009 international dates.
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