The road to Russia starts here...
AFC World Cup qualification
AFC ROAD TO RUSSIA.jpg
*The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification starts now.
*Qualification will see 46 teams competing for 4 or 5 berths; a playoff against CONCACAF determines which confederation gets the Inter-confederation play-off berth.
*The 2014 AFC World Cup qualification saw Australia, Japan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and South Korea advance to the World Cup finals. However, unlike the 2010 World Cup Finals where 4/5 AFC nations advanced out of their respective groups into the knockout round, in 2014, not one AFC nation advanced past the Group Stage.
*Here is how qualifying will work:
*First round: 12 teams (ranked 35–46) will play home-and-away over two legs. The six winners will advance to the second round.
*Second round: 40 teams (ranked 1–34 and the six first round winners) will be divided into eight groups of five teams to play home-and-away round-robin matches. The eight group winners and the four best group runners-up will then advance to the third round of FIFA World Cup qualification.
*Third round: The 12 teams (an increase from 10 for 2014) which will advance from the second round will be divided into two groups of six teams to play home-and-away round-robin matches. The top two teams of each group will then qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. The two third-placed teams will advance to the fourth round.
*Fourth round: The two third-placed teams of each group from the third round will play home-and-away over two legs. The winner will advance to the Inter-confederation play-offs against the nation that qualifies from CONCACAF.
What will happen this time around?