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.

Prandelli: We're aiming for first

Sun, 07 Aug 2011 17:18:00 GMT

"We’re Italy and naturally, with the greatest respect to the other sides in the group, we’re aiming to finish in first place," Cesare Prandelli, Italy coach

Italy relishing success once again

Mon, 01 Aug 2011 16:27:00 GMT

Since crashing out at the group stage at South Africa 2010, Italy have revamped their squad and will look to top Group B in Europe, with Denmark, Czech Republic and Bulgaria their toughest opponents in the section.

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.

Celebrations for Swiss, Slovaks

Wed, 14 Oct 2009 22:42:00 GMT

Switzerland and Slovakia seized Europe's last two automatic berths in South Africa, while Portugal, Greece, Slovenia and Ukraine made the play-offs.

Portugal canter into play-offs

Wed, 14 Oct 2009 22:04:00 GMT

Portugal cruised to a 4-0 victory over Malta that clinched them a place in the play-offs and ended Sweden's chances of reaching South Africa 2010.

Two tickets on offer in Europe

Mon, 12 Oct 2009 10:09:00 GMT

Switzerland, Greece, Slovakia and Slovenia head into Wednesday's final qualifiers hoping to claim the two remaining direct tickets to South Africa.

Ronaldo ruled out of qualifier

Sun, 11 Oct 2009 15:41:00 GMT

Due to an ankle injury, Real Madrid striker Cristiano Ronaldo will not be fit to play in Portugal's final South Africa 2010 qualifier against Malta on Wednesday.

Crisis times for goal-shy Portugal

Wed, 16 Sep 2009 08:28:00 GMT

Despite boasting the reigning FIFA World Player Cristiano Ronaldo among other talents, Portugal face an uphill struggle to reach South Africa 2010.

Sweden eke out crucial victory

Wed, 09 Sep 2009 20:19:00 GMT

A late Ian Azzopardi own goal grabbed Sweden a 1-0 success away to tailenders Malta that lifted their hopes of advancing from a competitive pool.

England and Serbia on the verge

Tue, 08 Sep 2009 00:54:00 GMT

England and Serbia will have the chance to reach South Africa 2010 in midweek, while Denmark, Slovakia and Spain could also secure qualification.

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.

Changes in attack for Sweden

Tue, 09 Jun 2009 15:08:00 GMT

Johan Elmander has followed Markus Rosenberg and Henrik Larsson in pulling out of the Sweden squad for their qualifier against Malta.

Mission to join the Dutch

Tue, 09 Jun 2009 09:56:00 GMT

A crop of European teams could put one hand on a place at South Africa 2010 in midweek, while others will attempt to improve their slim chances.

Hutchinson receives Malta call-up

Mon, 01 Jun 2009 06:27:00 GMT

Central Coast Mariners midfielder John Hutchinson has been called up to the Maltese national team for their upcoming FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

Hungary go top with Malta win

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 20:55:00 GMT

Hungary edged closer to a first FIFA World Cup appearance in almost 25 years with a 3-0 win over Malta that piles further pressure on Portugal.

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.

Points to make in Europe

Fri, 27 Mar 2009 08:14:00 GMT

FIFA.com looks ahead to the latest set of European Zone qualifiers, which include crucial games in a wide open Group 1, and tests for some big names.

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.

Youngsters lead Danish renaissance

Thu, 02 Oct 2008 10:27:00 GMT

After an astonishing last-gasp triumph in Portugal, resurgent Denmark have their sights set on a fourth FIFA World Cup finals appearance.

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.

Big guns fail to convince

Sun, 07 Sep 2008 00:07:00 GMT

England and Italy struggled to victory over minnows, Austria upset France, and Romania and Scotland fell to surprise defeats on their openers.

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.

Portugal face twin Nordic threat

Sun, 25 Nov 2007 20:48:00 GMT

Portugal will go into qualifying for South Africa 2010 as favourites to top Group 1 although they can expect tough competition.

Scolari (POR): Obliged to go through

Sun, 25 Nov 2007 19:05:00 GMT

Luiz Felipe Scolari: "We've drawn some very tough opponents but we're obliged to go through. As such, we need to bear in mind that only the first-placed team earn a direct passage."

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.