| UEFA (Europe) | AFC (Asia) |
| Denmark | Australia |
| England | Japan |
| Germany | North Korea |
| Italy | South Korea |
| Netherlands | CONMEBOL (South America) |
| Serbia | Argentina |
| Slovakia | Brazil |
| Spain | Chile |
| Switzerland | Paraguay |
| CONCACAF (North America) | CAF (Africa) |
| Honduras | Ghana |
| Mexico | Ivory Coast |
| USA | South Africa (host nation) |
The remaining 9 spots will be decided by playoffs and the final group stage games in Africa. The playoffs are as follows:
UEFA
| Pot A | Pot B |
| France Greece Portugal Russia | Bosnia and Herzegovina Republic of Ireland Slovenia Ukraine |
The teams from Pot A (higher ranked teams) will be randomly drawn against the teams from Pot B (lower ranked teams), and will play home and away legs on November 14 and 18. The decision to rank teams in this manner instead of in a free draw has drawn some criticism, as it seems as if FIFA wants to protect its big name teams (and players, namely Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo) to ensure there is enough public interest in the tournament. Ireland goalkeeper Shay Given was particularly upset, claiming, “"Had they stated the rules from day one then that would have been fair on everyone. We deserved to finish second, Russia and Portugal deserved to finish second, so I do not see how it should be different for them and for us. You would just like to think it would be fair for everyone. Why should these teams get preferential treatment? It should be the same for everyone." Still, the playoffs will offer some of the biggest drama the football world will see until the World Cup Finals come around next June.
AFC/Oceania
Bahrain and New Zealand have played the first leg of their two-legged playoff, a 0-0 draw in Bahrain, and the second leg is to come November 14 at Westpac Stadium in Wellington, New Zealand. A draw of one or more goals sends Bahrain to its first World Cup in the country’s history via the away goals rule, while a New Zealand win on home soil would send it to its first World Cup since 1982, where they went winless and got outscored 12-2 in three matches. Though neither team will be expected to make much noise next summer, this will still be a racket of a match, with national glory on the line.
CONMEBOL/CONCACAF
In two of the more dramatic regions, a spot in the World Cup will come down to a two-legged playoff between Uruguay and Costa Rica, to be played in Costa Rica on November 14 and Uruguay on November 18. Argentina came within 4 points of needing to qualify via this playoff, needing a 1-0 win at Uruguay on the final match-day of qualifying to help ensure their spot in South Africa. On that same day, Costa Rica was within minutes of qualifying automatically, until a stunning Jonathan Bornstein goal in the 5th minute of extra time gave the USA a draw, and took away two essential points from Costa Rica, sending Honduras to South Africa. These are two fantastic teams with fantastic fan bases that are more passionate about football than anything else.
CAF
In group A, Cameroon leads Gabon 10 points to 9 with one match left each, with Cameroon traveling to Morocco and Gabon traveling to Togo on November 14. Both teams should be favorites to win their respective games, which would ensure Samuel Eto’o and Cameroon a spot in the World Cup.
In Group B, Tunisia leads Nigeria 11 points to 9. The teams are even on goal differential, so a Nigeria win at Kenya and Tunisia draw at Mozambique would send Nigeria to the World Cup. For Tunisia, it is win and you’re in.
In Group C, Algeria leads Egypt 13 points to 10, with the colossal match-up of Algeria at Egypt to come on November 14. Algeria has a +7 GD while Egypt is a +3, so Egypt needs at least 2 goal win. This would give both teams a +5 GD and 9 goals scored. In this case, the group winner and South Africa-bound team would be decided by a random draw or playoff (I hope to God it’s a playoff…). If Egypt wins by more than 3 goals, they are in the World Cup.
Surprise Teams Left Out
Croatia: Highest ranked team in the FIFA World Rankings that will not make it, at 9th.
Czech Republic: A Czech tabloid offered European minnows San Marino a large sum of money if they were to beat Slovenia, which would have allowed the Czechs a chance at qualifying. However, San Marino lost 3-0, wrapping up their qualifying campaign with an 0-0-10 record, getting outscored 47-1.
Bulgaria: The fighting Dimitar Berbatovs finished third behind Italy and Ireland in their group.
6th ranked Russia and 10th ranked France will both be involved in nerve-wracking qualifiers to make it to South Africa.
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