Asian and Caribbean upsets, tight battles in South America and a first-ever win for American Samoa were among the latest qualifying tales as the race for Brazil 2014 heated up.
The first round of qualifying for the 2014 FIFA World Cup™ in Brazil has been completed, seeing a barrel-load of goals scored around Asia, with the likes of big-guns Vietnam being joined by first-time qualifiers Philippines.
Asia's FIFA World Cup preliminaries have been decided,
with the continent's big five set to start with home fixtures
against the groups' underdogs.
The Asian confederation has produced more than its fair share of joy and drama in FIFA World Cup qualifying down through the years.
The field of 200 teams taking part in the 2010 FIFA World Cup Preliminaries includes five nations making their first appearance at this level.
Despite some courageous underdog attempts, the favourites all completed aggregate wins to clear the first hurdle in the race to South Africa 2010.
