The qualifications process for the FIFA world cup is the process of taking the 200 participants around the world, to the top 32 teams to participate in the Cup. The qualifying matches are held in the six FIFA continental zones (not Antarctica), and are organized by that continents confederations. FIFA determine the number of spots which will be awarded to each continent before the qualification process begins, based on the number of teams from each zone.

The host nation is automatically given a spot in the Cup. The additional teams are determined by the games they play leading up to the World Cup Event itself. FIFA’s current setup has 32 available seats (one for the host nation, and 31 to be won by other countries.) The previous cup’s winner is not automatically entered into the cup, they must qualify like the other competing nations. The FIFA comittee decides on how many spots will be given to each continental zone, at least three years prior to the World Cup event. The qualifications process begins in September two year before the Cup takes place, and goes through November the year prior to the Cup being held.

It is a long process, and many games are played to eliminate the field from 200 to 32 nations.