The selection of teams for the final stage of the 2014 FIFA World Cup is coming to an end. I present to your attention the selection procedure that European teams go through.
It is necessary
Football, World Cup, Calculator, Match Results
Instructions
Step 1
At the very beginning, all 53 European countries are divided into nine groups. The division takes place according to the current ratings of the teams, and is carried out in the host country of the championship, in our case, in Brazil. Since the number of teams is not divisible by exactly 9, there are only 5 teams in one group, while the remaining eight will have 6. The qualifying tournament includes 2 games with each of the opponents, at home and away.
Step 2
As a result of all the games, 9 strongest teams from each group, who took the first places, are identified. They go directly to the finals of the World Championship. The teams that took second places, as a result of an additional draw, form pairs, the winners of which are ultimately also selected for the World Cup. Games in pairs are held in the same way: at home and away. The winner is determined by the sum of the two matches. If the result of the sum is a draw, then they look at the number of goals scored in a foreign field. Whoever has more - he goes on. If all indicators are equal, then extra time is assigned in the second match, and then a penalty shoot-out until a winner is identified.
Step 3
The question may arise: if there are 9 groups, then the teams that took second places are also 9, so how are they divided into pairs. The answer is simple: the team with the least points from the second place does not participate in pairing and subsequent qualifying matches. It crashes automatically. One more nuance. Since the groups have an unequal number of teams (5 teams in one, 6 teams in the rest), points scored with the teams that took sixth places in the groups are excluded from the calculation of the total points of the teams that took second places.
