Asia and Oceania Confederations considering combining World Cup qualifying

The AFC (Asian Football Confederation) and OFC (Oceania Football Confederation) have entered into discussions to join their World Cup qualifiers together, said AFC President, Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al-Khalifa (Bahrain) on the 27/11/2013, in Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia).

Representatives from Asia and Oceania were heavily defeated in the intercontinental play-offs for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil: Jordan (AFC) were eliminated by Uruguay (0-5, 0-0) and New Zealand by Mexico (1-5, 2-4), on the 13 and 20/11/2013.

Asia will therefore have four representatives out of 46 associations, at the 2014 World Cup (12/06 to 13/07/2013): South Korea, Iran, Japan and Australia (Oceania countries who joined the AFC in 2006). Oceania (11 national associations) will not be represented in Brazil.

Together, only 7% of these confederations' members have qualified (4 from 57), while the CONMEBOL (South American Confederation) can count on 60% of its members (6 from 10, including Brazil, who host, as well as Argentina, Colombia, Chile, Ecuador and Uruguay).

"This is something that we are discussing with Oceania…