The war in Ukraine and the COVID-19 pandemic will affect the ranking of some teams ahead of the World Cup draw next week.
FIFA on Tuesday set the procedure for the draw in Qatar, scheduled for 1er April. Only 29 of the 32 teams in the draw will be known by then due to the war and the global health crisis. The remaining three places will be decided in June.
During the draw, the 29 qualified teams will be divided into four pots according to their FIFA ranking.
Host country Qatar is in Pot 1 along with defending champions France, Belgium, Brazil, Argentina and England. Germany, champions of the 2014 World Cup, do not appear in the top 10 for over three years and will be in Pot 2.
FIFA has resolved the uncertainty of how to rank the three undecided entries by creating reserved places in Pot 4. The teams affected could end up in a more difficult World Cup group than their ranking warrants simply because ‘they couldn’t finish their matches as originally planned. The teams affected include those of Ukraine, Wales and Colombia; all three, if they qualified, would likely have ended up in Pot 3.
Only 15 teams have qualified for the World Cup so far ahead of the other qualifiers next week.
Ukraine were due to play Scotland on Thursday, with the winner advancing to face Wales or Austria on March 29. Ukraine, however, requested a postponement, as it was not possible for local players to train and travel during the Russian invasion.
The pandemic also delayed the intercontinental playoff round. It is now set to be played in Qatar on June 13-14. An Asian team will face a South American team, and the Oceania representative will face a team from the North American region.
The World Cup is scheduled to be played from November 21 to December 18 in eight stadiums around the Qatari capital of Doha.