2002 FIFA World Cup qualification 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. "12 of the 32 teams subsequently
National team appearances in the FIFA World Cup World Cup. After the first twenty-one World Cups, all top 2 finishes, and all but two top 4 finishes, have been achieved by European (UEFA) and South American (CONMEBOL) countries. The other four football regions together have got just one third place, won by the United States in the inaugural 1930 tournament, and one fourth place, won by South Korea on home soil in 2002. National team appearances in the FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the International Federation of Association Football