FIFA.com - News

European qualifying fixtures announced

Thu, 01 Dec 2011 16:52:00 GMT

All but two of the Groups in European Zone qualifying for Brazil 2014 have had their fixtures finalised, with England, France, Italy and Spain starting out away to Moldova, Finland, Bulgaria and Georgia respectively.

Olsen: It could have been worse

Sun, 07 Aug 2011 17:16:00 GMT

"Things could have turned worse for us, even though getting Cyprus and Iceland out of pots five and six will make it a tricky group," Egil Olsen, Norway coach.

Trio targeting top spot

Mon, 01 Aug 2011 00:28:00 GMT

The race for first place promises to be an enthralling tussle as Group E pits together three sides – Norway, Slovenia and Switzerland – in the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking top 30.

Drama and derbies await in Europe

Sun, 31 Jul 2011 00:37:00 GMT

The draw for the European zone yielded some potentially thrilling sections, with local rivalries set to be stirred and the world champions left to do battle with another winner of football's ultimate prize.

Iceland frustrate Norway

Sat, 05 Sep 2009 23:42:00 GMT

Norway's qualification bid for South Africa 2010 suffered a setback as they were held to a draw by Iceland in Reykjavik tonight.

Swedes surge as France flounder

Sat, 05 Sep 2009 23:32:00 GMT

Sweden gave some much-needed impetus to their qualification hopes with a win over Hungary, while France could only draw with Romania at home.

England, Serbia edge ever closer

Wed, 10 Jun 2009 23:20:00 GMT

England took a big step towards next year's finals in South Africa with an emphatic win over Andorra while Serbia and Russia did their hopes no harm.

Olsen hopes Dutch lack focus

Wed, 10 Jun 2009 03:49:00 GMT

With the Netherlands qualifying for South Africa 2010 last weekend, Norway coach Egil Olsen is hoping that the Dutch will be distracted for their qualifier.

Safe passage for Netherlands

Sat, 06 Jun 2009 22:56:00 GMT

The Netherlands became the first European side to book passage to South Africa as England, Serbia, Denmark and Slovakia moved closer to the finals.

Oranje lead Euro charge

Sat, 06 Jun 2009 22:07:00 GMT

The Netherlands became the first European team to book their place at the 2010 FIFA World Cup with a 2-1 win over Iceland in Reykjavik.

Dutch close in as neighbours clash

Fri, 05 Jun 2009 07:57:00 GMT

In Europe, the Netherlands know that a win in Iceland will guarantee a spot in South Africa, while Sweden square up to Nordic neighbours Demark.

Duo join Oranje squad

Wed, 03 Jun 2009 16:12:00 GMT

Robin van Persie and Demy de Zeeuw have joined up with the Netherlands squad for the upcoming qualifiers, but Nigel de Jong misses out.

Iceland cling to South Africa dream

Wed, 29 Apr 2009 08:36:00 GMT

FIFA.com found Iceland coach Olafur Johannesson in cautious, but cordial mood when outlining his side's goals for the year ahead and beyond.

Scots bounce back with Iceland win

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 22:42:00 GMT

Ross McCormack and Steven Fletcher's first international goals gave Scotland a 2-1 home win over Iceland in their South Africa 2010 qualifier.

Scots axe Rangers duo

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 09:48:00 GMT

Scotland have dropped captain Barry Ferguson and goalkeeper Allan McGregor for the match against Iceland over a disciplinary breach.

Flawless trio aim for more

Tue, 31 Mar 2009 16:38:00 GMT

Spain, England and Netherlands have won all their games to date and are out to consolidate their leads on matchday six in the European Zone.

Scotland in Iceland challenge

Tue, 31 Mar 2009 07:47:00 GMT

Following a heavy defeat against the Netherlands on the weekend Scotland will face a test of character when they host group rivals Iceland.

McManus ruled out for Scots

Thu, 26 Mar 2009 17:08:00 GMT

Scotland will be without Stephen McManus when they take on the Netherlands, but there was better news regarding Barry Ferguson's fitness.

Scots endure triple blow

Tue, 24 Mar 2009 13:23:00 GMT

Rangers duo Kirk Broadfoot and David Weir and Derby's Kris Commons have been ruled out of Scotland's qualifier with the Netherlands on Saturday.

Burley selects old heads

Tue, 17 Mar 2009 15:51:00 GMT

Scotland coach George Burley has opted to select experience over youth for their qualifying double header against Netherlands and Iceland.

Determining Europe's runners-up

Thu, 16 Oct 2008 15:17:00 GMT

FIFA has revealed the criteria that will determine the eight best runners-up in the group phase of European Zone qualifying for South Africa 2010.

Fearsome foursome lead the way

Tue, 14 Oct 2008 05:10:00 GMT

Four teams have maintained a perfect record on the first three matchdays of European qualifying for South Africa 2010. Can they keep it up?

Fast starters eye nine from nine

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 09:09:00 GMT

England, Greece, Italy, Lithuania, Ukraine and Spain will hope to make it three wins in a row, but the pressure is on Croatia, France and Portugal.

Papy rides to the rescue

Tue, 07 Oct 2008 08:34:00 GMT

With injuries to their first and second-choice goalkeepers, the Netherlands have issued an SOS to their most capped player, Edwin van der Sar.

Burley: Scotland back on track

Thu, 11 Sep 2008 01:08:00 GMT

George Burley believes Scotland are back on track for FIFA World Cup qualification following their 2-1 win in Iceland.

Ten-man Scots win in Iceland

Wed, 10 Sep 2008 21:54:00 GMT

Ten-man Scotland survived a late Iceland onslaught to claim a 2-1 win and move joint-top of European Group 9.

Trebles steal the headlines

Wed, 10 Sep 2008 18:24:00 GMT

Theo Walcott scored a hat-trick to inspire England to a 4-1 win in Croatia, while Miroslav Klose's treble saved Germany from defeat in Finland.

All eyes on Zagreb

Tue, 09 Sep 2008 11:24:00 GMT

England face a tough test against bogey side Croatia in the pick of Wednesday evening's FIFA World Cup qualifying matches in Europe.

Burley upbeat despite fresh injury blows

Tue, 09 Sep 2008 02:45:00 GMT

Despite two more additions to Scotland's lengthy injury list, manager George Burley is upbeat heading into Wednesday's qualifier in Iceland.

Fletcher promoted as Scots wait on Miller

Mon, 08 Sep 2008 15:26:00 GMT

Scotland have promoted Hibernian striker Steven Fletcher from the U-21s to the senior squad for Wednesday's crucial FIFA World Cup qualifier in Iceland.

European qualifiers taking shape

Wed, 16 Jan 2008 12:00:00 GMT

The European teams have been busy drawing up a fixture list, with the matchdays for Groups 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, and 8 now set in stone.

Orange and Tartan to clash

Mon, 26 Nov 2007 00:56:00 GMT

In the only five-team group, Netherlands will come under strong pressure from Scotland if they can maintain their recent improvement.

Van Basten (NED): Scotland are very dangerous

Sun, 25 Nov 2007 19:10:00 GMT

Marco van Basten: "Scotland are very dangerous at the moment, especially over the last two years, and we have to be very careful playing against them."

Europe stirs preliminary passions

Sat, 24 Nov 2007 12:39:00 GMT

In our feature examining the history of FIFA World Cup preliminaries, FIFA.com reflects on Europe's most memorable and dramatic qualifiers.