http://sports.yahoo.com/m/world/news/reuters/20021217/reu-fifa20021217.html I certainly hope New Zealand, and Fiji can rapidly improve over the next few years to make the qualifying interesting.
laughable decision... What was wrong with the previous system?? The competition is so weak in the pacific region that the aussies are guaranteed a WC place.. Scores of 30 - 0 were recorded in some of these qualifier games... The 2 leg playoff against a team who failed to automatically qualify from another region was generous enough..But this is a joke..
Oh but it's called the World Cup and apparently this means that all the confederations should be represented, even if this means that the same team from that confederation will qualify every time after battling against the likes of American Samoa and Guam. What a good example this sets - whinge loud enough for long enough and you'll eventually get your own way.
Oceania shouldn't be a confederation - should be merged with Asia or CONCACAF, with an extra place there. However, as it is a confederation, it needs to have a WC spot.
You see, this is where I have a problem - why?? As a God given right? It's not a strong confederation, to the point that I'd say it was a shite one. Just because of it's false position as a confederation along geographical lines, doesn't mean it should have an automatic spot. Other countries have to really win the right to play in a WC - essentially having a home-away match with a lacklustre opponent such as New Zealand isn't fair on those who've actually had to do something to get there.
Australia and New Zealand should have to play each other in a best of 7 game series to see who gets in.
When FIFA formed the Oceania confederation in the late 90's, Australia and NZ didn't want to be apart of it, they both wanted to be in Asia. There is no chance of them getting back into asia. We would love to take the place and give it to asia and qualify there, but it isn't going to happen. What isn't fair is losing one game and missing out on the world cup. We didn't lose any games in 98 and only one in each of the 94 and 2002 qualifiers. How many other nations lose one game and miss out? If you ask me, I don't think asia deserves all their spots and North/Central america doesn't deserve the extra 1/2 place they were given. Oceania are going to the world cup, live with it.
Well said Craig and sammydog. Most Aussies would prefer we were part of AFC (or have to at least compete in the final AFC WCQ) but this is not the case and FIFA have granted OFC (a full confederation) a full spot which Oceania (and hopefully Australia!) will happily take!
But by the same token, how many teams have to beat the likes of Tuvalu and get to the finals? Agree whole-heartedly I guess I shall have to. And beleive me, I don't blame the Oceania Confederation for the situation, and yes I also know most Oceanians would want to prove their worth by qualifying with/in AFC. My arsey mood has since been tempered by the fact that South America may very well get the 2010 WC and that the preposterous notion of rotation hasn't been finalised and may yet be scrapped.
maczebus I guess my point with the not losing a game was that even in the playoffs it has come down to away goals in almost every series. If we got to play in a final qualifying pool like every other confederation I think that m,ore often than not we would have qualified. And playing bad opposition does waork against us when it comes to playing in the playoffs we have had. More often than not our teams first solid game is the playoff, against teams that have been playing strong opposition for the previaous 18 months, and we have never performed bad in those games. pololo I don't quite understand your reasoning for calling us snobs, if you had read the posts you would have seen that we would have prefered to qualify with asia.
Take it easy.... As soon as the Aussies crash out of Germany 2006, FIFA will see what a mistake they've made and either rescind the full spot or put them in with Asia.
Well Australia's not THAT bad. Strong youth teams and a very reasonable NT. FIFA are a bunch of ************ing criminals. Sepp Blatter and his friends should be hung in a very high tree.
Lest my comments get taken wrongly... I would love to see Australia (or whomever) do well in the World Cup, but I don't think that now was the time for this experiment. Blatter has already over-represented one confederation (Africa) for political gain, and I don't think it's right for him to do the same now. I still think that unless Oceania qualified through a playoff, and then performed well in the WC Finals, they do not deserve a guaranteed spot.
SOME ARE EARNED, SOME ARE GIFTED I agree with you that Asia doesn't deserve all their spots, but I certainly think CONCACAF does deserve an extra 1/2 spot. Just look at our collective performance in the past three World Cups, 2002 (2/3 to second round), 1998 (1/3 to second round) & 1994 (2/2 to second round). Only the USA in 1998 demonstrated a poor performance. The other CONCACAF teams that didn't qualify for the second rounds played well. CONCACAF earned their extra 1/2 spot. Oceania was politically gifted theirs. I can live with that.
the way i see it is australia gets to go to the next couple of world cups. this is fking joke! what are you gonna do when viduka and kewell are done. that is only reason your team is worth a damn. without them you are absolute sh!t. its hard to lose when your stiffest competition is NZ and teams that have donated uniforms and second hand shoes... then we get to see Aus or NZ in every world cup for the rest of our lives while quality teams from the rest of the world sit out because they actually have to compete for a spot. hope you didn't forget the cheese because the whine was delicious. (i will give you this, ned kelly was a cool!)
Follow this link. Pretty much says it all. http://www.sportsnet.ca/soccer/story/10403271044176.shtml?sport=soccer&STORY_OID=10403271044176
The funny thing is that a spot is being taken away from countries who care, and given to one of two countries where soccer is considered a game for girls, children and pansies (of course a decent WC finals appearance may change this)
Here's a number of opinions from Australians on FIFA's decision to grant Oceania direct qualification. If you think Australians are unaminiously delighted by the decision think again. http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=55080 http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=55081 http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=55150 http://www.bigfooty.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=55276
Those are Australian Football(Rugby like)fans,most of them don't know nothing about soccer other than the Australia team.
Probably would have helped if you actually some posts before you came to that assumption. Sure it's an Australian Rules Football site but most Australian sports fans are knowledgeable about more than one sport and this includes soccer. Soccer is the most participated sport in Australia amongst males by a long margin. International soccer leagues get extensive coverage on both free-to-air (thanks to SBS) and pay tv. A lot of Australians religiously follow the EPL as well as the Primera Liga and Serie A. Many Australians are very knowledgeable about soccer around the world and have a strong passion for it. Oh, but this doesn't fit into your gripe about Australians knowing nothing and caring little about soccer, so forget about what I just said.
You could have added that the many of the world cup games out rated any other sporting event this year. But your right we don't care about soccer. Nor do the 3500 australians who got tickets to the England - Australia game.
Ive read most of the comments from the link and there where some persons admitted that they don't follow soccer so much. And you hear the happy Australians getting their free ride and the comments about the South American dont have nothing but Brazil and Argentina etc etc. I really don't take these people serious.
I can't wait to see the look on the faces of Kewell, Viduka and the like when they see New Zealand celebrating qualification for 2006