Predictions - WC Qualifiers

Hello all my friends, I have come up with another Soccer News. As you know that the Soccer World Cup draw in Durban is less than 400 days away now! I thought it’d be a good opportunity to think about which teams names will be in those little balls to be drawn out for the groups for 2010. Soccer Fans have already started Football Betting in various World cup prdictions. Here are some of my predictions and I have also mentioned the reasons why each team should be there:

I will post later about the UEFA section because the UEFA section will the longest time and it is also the hardest one to predict anything.
AFC - Australia, Japan, Korea Republic, Saudi Arabia and Iran.
These are the best five teams in Asia. I don’t think there can be many objections. Uzbekistan or Bahrain will probably get into the playoff spot but they are likely to be overpowered by Saudi Arabia/Iran/Korea Republic. Two of the three teams mentioned will qualify automatically, the other will playoff and smash New Zealand.

CAF - Cameroon, Nigeria, Egypt, Ghana & Cote d’Ivoire
The final round for the CAF has taken shape. Five groups of four, with the top team in each group to qualify. Egypt and Cote d’Ivoire should not have any excuses not to qualify, they have relatively easy groups. Cameroon and Nigeria have tric

ky groups with Cameroon having to tackle Morocco and Togo, whilst the Nigerians have to face recent World Cup regulars Tunisia. Ghana have the threat of Mali to deal with but I think they’ll have too much quality.

CONCACAF - Mexico, USA & Costa Rica. There is quite a gulf between these three nations and the rest of CONCACAF, and its been obvious for the last ten years. They’ll get through easily, but the fourth placed team will lose the playoff, the South American team will be way too strong.

CONMEBOL - Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay & Chile. The first three are the “usual suspects” and will definitely be there. Uruguay are looking good and will probably also be there this time, after the disappointment of not making Germany 2006. Ecuador, who usually have been World Cup regulars have had a slower start than usual. Their away form has been terrible which is in contrast to Chile, whose away form has been sound, so I’ve tipped them ahead of Ecuador. Whoever comes fifth will beat the CONCACAF qualifier in the playoff.

The UEFA qualifiers will be analyzed in another article in the future since it is too early to make a reasonable prediction. Overall, it seems that most of the teams that will be there in 2010 will be pretty much the same ones that fought it out in Germany 2 years ago. However, previous World Cups have shown that there are always first timers. Hence, surprises should expected when most qualifiers resume in 2009. These weeks, I won't be able to post regularly because of EPL season and Fantasy Football. Cheers!!!

About the Football Association

The Football Association, also known as simply The FA, is the governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. It was formed in 1863, and is the oldest national football association. Based in Soho Square (as of 2009 wembley stadium), London, it is responsible for overseeing all aspects of the game of football in England, both professional and amateur. The FA sanctions all competitive football matches in England, either directly (at a National Level), or indirectly (at a local level through County Football Associations). It runs numerous competitions, the most famous of which is the annual FA Cup. It is also responsible for appointing the management of the men's, women's and youth national football teams. The FA is a founder member of both UEFA and FIFA and is a member of the International Football Association Board, which is responsible for the laws of the game.



The Football Association is a member of UEFA and FIFA and holds a permanent seat on the International Football Association Board (IFAB). As the first ever football association, it uniquely does not use the national name (i.e. English) in its title (compared to the Scottish Football Association, for example). It is headquartered at 25 Soho Square, London, United Kingdom although it has now begun relocation to offices built in the Wembley Stadium to cut down on rent costs. All of England's professional football teams are members of the Football Association. The FA is responsible for the appointment of the management of the England men's and women's national teams and the organization of the FA Cup. Although it does not run the day-to-day operations of the country's top league, the Premier League, it has veto power over the appointment of the league Chairman and Chief Executive and over any changes to league rules.[1] The Football League, England's second tier league, consisting of The Championship, League One and League Two, is self-governing. Both the F.A and the Football league have the power to restrict transfers and deduct points from clubs, most commonly for clubs going into administration or experiencing financial irregularities. However this is controversial as it is often the case that points are deducted from struggling clubs, worsening their financial situations and upsetting the fans of the clubs so penalized. The game is controlled at the local level, by 43 County Football Associations affiliated to The Football Association but with responsibilities for organising and running football activities in their area. The Jersey, Guernsey, and Isle of Man Football Associations are organised as County Football Associations below the FA.[2] A hierarchy of leagues operates throughout the game, each taking responsibility for the administration of their own activities, such as membership, fixtures and registrations. The FA owns and runs both Wembley Stadium and the National Football Centre (The National Football Centre is currently under construction with a target for completion set for 2010).

About UEFA Champions League

The UEFA Champions League (usually referred to as simply the Champions League or less frequently as the European Cup) is an annual association football cup competition organised by UEFA since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It is the most prestigious club trophy in European football. Prior to 1992 the tournament was officially called the European Champion Clubs' Cup but was usually referred to as simply the European Cup or European Champions' Cup. The competition was initially a straight knockout competition open only to the champion club of each country. During the 1990s the tournament began to be expanded, incorporating a round-robin group phase and more teams. Europe's strongest national leagues now provide up to four teams each for the competition. The UEFA Champions League should not be confused with the UEFA Europa League, formerly known as the UEFA Cup.

UEFA Cup

The tournament consists of several stages. In the present format it begins in mid-July with three knockout qualifying rounds. The 16 surviving teams join 16 seeded teams in the group stage, in which there are eight groups consisting of four teams each. The eight group winners and eight runners-up enter the final knockout phase, which ends with the final match in May. The title has been won by 21 different clubs, 12g of which have won the title more than once. The all-time record-holders are Real Madrid, who have won the competition nine times, including the first five seasons it was contested. Barcelona are the current champions. Since the tournament changed name and structure in 1992, no club has managed consecutive wins.