Oceania’s top teams also learned who they will be up against in the initial stages of the OFC qualifiers with tournaments coming up in Samoa and Fiji over the next 12 months.

But it was the intercontinental play-off draw that kicked off proceedings at the Marina da Gloria on Saturday evening (local time).

With FIFA Secretary General Jerome Valcke conducting proceedings, Asia was drawn against South America for the first half spot before Oceania and CONCACAF were paired. It means OFC’s top qualifier will square off against the fourth best side from the North, Central American and Caribbean region for a place at the FIFA World Cup™, changing from the previous pathway when they faced Asia’s fifth best.

OFC General Secretary Tai Nicholas, who watched the draw proceedings, says he is looking forward to the qualification journey kicking off.

“It is great to see the pathway finalized and it has been done in a fair manner,” says Nicholas.

“CONCACAF teams have a very different style to those in Asia and South American so it will be interesting to see how the OFC team adjusts for the intercontinental play-off, which is always going to be tough when such a coveted prize is at stake.”

Prior to this play-off, the OFC qualifiers will consist of three stages. The road begins in Samoa with the four lowest ranked Member Associations (based on the FIFA/Coca-Cola Ranking of July 2011 and for sporting reasons) playing in a central tournament based on a league system from 21-26 November 2011. This includes American Samoa, Cook Islands, Samoa and Tonga.

The winner of Round One will go on to compete in the second stage tournament involving two groups of four teams, which were drawn at the ceremony in Rio de Janeiro.

Group A consists of Vanuatu, New Caledonia, Winner Round One and Tahiti while Group B includes Fiji, New Zealand, Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea.

This tournament is scheduled to take place from 1-12 June 2012 in Fiji, with the winner earning the right to represent OFC at the FIFA Confederations Cup in Brazil in 2013.

Nicholas says the draw has delivered some intriguing match ups.

“All eyes will be on Samoa this November when the underdogs of Oceania try to keep their World Cup hopes alive. Then we’ll see more hotly contested matches in Fiji for Round Two as old rivals New Caledonia and Tahiti have been drawn together in Group A while favourites New Zealand will take on the likes of Fiji and football-mad Solomon Islands.”

The four highest-placed teams from Round Two will then contest the third stage – a round-robin, home-and-away play-off series. These matches are foreseen to take place between 7 September 2012 and 26 March 2013 in FIFA windows.
The draw date, location, and procedure for Round Three will be confirmed by the end of Round Two by the Organizing Committee for the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™.
The winner of the third stage will advance to the inter-continental play-off against CONCACAF to see who will qualify for the FIFA World Cup™.
All 11 Member Associations within OFC will take part in qualifying with a total of 36 matches to be played.
2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™ – Oceanian Zone
Round One
Venue: Samoa
Dates: 21-26 November 2011
Teams: American Samoa, Cook Islands, Samoa, Tonga
The winner of Round One will advance to Round Two
Round Two
Venue: Fiji
Dates: 1-12 June 2012
Group A:
Vanuatu
New Caledonia
Winner of Round 1
Tahiti
Group B:
Fiji
New Zealand
Solomon Islands
Papua New Guinea
The four highest placed teams will advance to Round Three.
Round Three
Venue: Various
Dates: 7 September 2012 – 26 March 2013 (during FIFA windows)
The four participating teams will contest a round-robin, home-and-away play-off series.
The draw date, location, and procedure for stage three will be confirmed by the end of stage two by the Organizing Committee for the FIFA World Cup Brazil 2014™.
The winner of the third stage will advance to the inter-continental play-off against CONCACAF to see who will go through to the FIFA World Cup™.