African nations at the FIFA World Cup by Asamoah Gyan. Had Ghana won their quarter final they would have become the very first African nation to progress to the semifinals of the world cup. Of the 32 countries that participated in the 2010 FIFA World Cup, FIFA ranked Ghana 7th. The 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil marked the first time more than one African team went beyond the group stages. While Ghana and Cameroon both collected disappointing results (apart from Ghana's 2–2 draw with later champions Germany, which saw them becoming the only team not to lose against the Germans in the entire tournament) and eventually
New Zealand at the FIFA World Cup New Zealand at the FIFA World Cup The New Zealand national football team has participated in 12 FIFA World Cup qualification campaigns between 1970 and 2014, qualifying for two; the 1982 FIFA World Cup in Spain and the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. Seven teams were involved in the AFC/OFC qualification process; Australia, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, North Korea, South Korea and Rhodesia, however, North Korea withdrew before any matches were played as they refused to play Israel. Due to North Korea's withdrawal, New Zealand, along with Israel and Rhodesia, received byes and advanced directly to the second