MAKING SENSE OF WORLD CUP QUALIFICATION: THE LONG ROAD TO THE FINALS, 4 January, 2002 -- d.l. murphy

Thirty-two nations have completed an incredible journey to qualify for this summer's 2002 World Cup in Japan/South Korea, the first ever World Cup to be held on the Asian continent. History in the making to be sure.

With some many nations, groups, qualification rounds, and international play-offs, the system can get confusing. Here then is a look at the basics of for World Cup qualification by international confederation.

European World Cup Qualification: Group 1 - Group 10 - Thirteen or Fourteen UEFA teams will qualify for the 2002 World Cup in Japan/South Korea. The Nine group winners will qualify automatically. France will have an automatic bid as returning champions. The eight runners-up from the group stages will engage in a play-off system with the four winners qualifying for the Finals. The nation that was not drawn out in the European play-off will match-up against a nation from Asia in a play-off for the final spot in the Finals.

Asia World Cup Qualification: Group 1 - Group 10 - Two or three Asian Football Confederation nations will qualify for 2002 World Cup Japan/South Korea. Japan and the Korea Republic automatically qualify as hosts. There is potential for up to 5 Asian temas represented at the Finals.

Round One: Operates as a league system - ten groups, comprised of four nations each. The ten group winners enter the second phase consisting of more league-system play. Round Two: A draw after the completion of the first phase divides the remaining teams into two groups of five. The two group winners will automatically qualify. The two runners-up in the groups match-up in a two-leg play-off to win the right to take part in another play-off with a European team for in the Finals. Whew!

CONCACAF World Cup Qualification: Three CONCACAF nations will qualify for the 2002 World Cup in Japan/South Korea. Qualification bean with a Preliminary Round, which saw 35 nations split into different sections or groups. The top twelve nations from the first round are divided into three groups of four in the second round. The top two nations in each of the three groups proceed to the Final Group Round. Finally, the top three nations in the Final Group Round qualify for the Finals.

CONMEBOL World Cup Qualification: Four or five South America teams will qualify for the 2002 World Cup. Each team plays a total of 18 games each. The top four nations automatically qualify for the Finals in Asia. The fifth placed team engages in a two-leg play-off with the winner of the Oceania region. The winner of this play-off qualifies for the Finals.