A total of 174 teams entered the 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds which began with the preliminary qualification draw on 12 December 1995 at Paris, competing for a total of 32 spots in the final tournament. This is the first time there would be 32 teams in the finals. France, as the hosts, and Brazil, as the defending champions, qualified automatically, leaving 30 spots open for competition.
The 32 spots available in the 1998 World Cup would be distributed among the continental zones as follows:
- Europe (UEFA): 15 places, 1 of them went to automatic qualifier France, while the other 14 places were contested by 49 teams.
- South America (CONMEBOL): 5 places, 1 of them went to automatic qualifier Brazil, while the other 4 places were contested by 9 teams.
- North, Central America and Caribbean (CONCACAF): 3 places, contested by 30 teams.
- Africa (CAF): 5 places, contested by 38 teams.
- Asia (AFC): 3.5 places, contested by 36 teams. The winner of the 0.5 place would advance to the Intercontinental Play-offs (against a team from OFC).
- Oceania (OFC): 0.5 place, contested by 10 teams. The winner of the 0.5 place would advance to the Intercontinental Play-offs (against a team from AFC).
A total of 168 teams played at least one qualifying match. A total of 643 qualifying matches were played, and 1922 goals were scored (an average of 2.99 per match).
Read more about 1998 FIFA World Cup Qualification: Continental Zones, Qualified Teams
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