1970 FIFA World Cup qualification

Encyclopedia : 1 : 19 : 197 : 1970 FIFA World Cup qualification

A total of 71 teams entered the 1970 World Cup qualification rounds, competing for a total of 16 spots in the final tournament. Mexico, as the hosts, and England, as the defending champions, qualified automatically, leaving 14 spots open for competition.

For the first time, the winners of both the African zone and the Asian and Oceanian zone were guaranteed a direct place in the final tournament. The 16 spots available in the 1970 World Cup would be distributed among the continental zones as follows:

Europe (UEFA): 9 places, 1 of them went to automatic qualifier England, while the other 8 places were contested by 29 teams.
South America (CONMEBOL): 3 places, contested by 10 teams.
North, Central America and Caribbean (CONCACAF): 2 places, 1 of them went to automatic qualifier Mexico, while the other 1 place was contested by 12 teams.
Africa (CAF): 1 place, contested by 11 teams.
Asia (AFC) and Oceania (OFC): 1 place, contested by 7 teams (including Rhodesia).

Listed below are the dates and results of the qualification rounds.

Contents

Europe

The 29 teams were divided into 8 groups of 3 or 4 teams each (three groups with 3 teams and five groups with 4 teams). The teams would play against each other on a home-and-away basis. The group winners would qualify.

UEFA Group 1

October 12, 1968, Basel, Switzerland - Switzerland 1 - 0

Greece

October 27, 1968, Lisbon, Portugal -

Portugal 3 - 0 
Romania

November 23, 1968, Bucharest, Romania -

Romania 2 - 0

Switzerland

December 11, 1968, Athens, Greece -

Greece 4 - 2 
Portugal

April 16, 1969, Lisbon, Portugal -

Portugal 0 - 2

Switzerland

April 16, 1969, Athens, Greece -

Greece 2 - 2 
Romania

May 4, 1969, Porto, Portugal -

Portugal 2 - 2 
Greece

May 14, 1969, Lausanne, Switzerland - Switzerland 0 - 1

Romania

October 12, 1969, Bucharest, Romania -

Romania 1 - 0 
Portugal

October 15, 1969, Thessaloniki, Greece -

Greece 4 - 1

Switzerland

November 2, 1969, Bern, Switzerland - Switzerland 1 - 1

Portugal

November 16, 1969, Bucharest, Romania -

Romania 1 - 1 
Greece

Rank	Team	Pts	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1	Romania	8	6	3	2	1	7	6
2	Greece	7	6	2	3	1	13	9
3	Switzerland	5	6	2	1	3	5	8
4	Portugal	4	6	1	2	3	8	10

Romania qualified.

UEFA Group 2

September 25, 1968, Copenhagen, Denmark -

Denmark 0 - 3 
Czechoslovakia

October 20, 1968, Bratislava, Czechoslovakia -

Czechoslovakia 1 - 0 
Denmark

May 4, 1969, Dublin, Ireland -

Republic of Ireland 1 - 2 
Czechoslovakia

May 25, 1969, Budapest, Hungary -

Hungary 2 - 0 
Czechoslovakia

May 27, 1969, Copenhagen, Denmark -

Denmark 2 - 0 
Republic of Ireland

June 8, 1969, Dublin, Ireland -

Republic of Ireland 1 - 2 
Hungary

June 15, 1969, Copenhagen, Denmark -

Denmark 3 - 2 
Hungary

September 14, 1969, Prague, Czechoslovakia -

Czechoslovakia 3 - 3 
Hungary

October 7, 1969, Prague, Czechoslovakia -

Czechoslovakia 3 - 0 
Republic of Ireland

October 15, 1969, Dublin, Ireland -

Republic of Ireland 1 - 1 
Denmark

October 22, 1969, Budapest, Hungary -

Hungary 3 - 0 
Denmark

November 5, 1969, Budapest, Hungary -

Hungary 4 - 0 
Republic of Ireland

Rank	Team	Pts	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1=	Czechoslovakia	9	6	4	1	1	12	6
1=	Hungary	9	6	4	1	1	16	7
3	Denmark	5	6	2	1	3	6	10
4	Republic of Ireland	1	6	0	1	5	3	14

Czechoslovakia and Hungary finished level on points, and a play-off on neutral ground was played to decide who would qualify.

December 3, 1969, Marseille, France -

Czechoslovakia 4 - 1 
Hungary

Czechoslovakia qualified.

UEFA Group 3

October 23, 1968, Cardiff, Wales -

Wales 0 - 1 
Italy

March 29, 1969, Berlin, East Germany -

East Germany 2 - 2 
Italy

April 16, 1969, Dresden, East Germany -

East Germany 2 - 1 
Wales

October 22, 1969, Cardiff, Wales -

Wales 1 - 3 
East Germany

November 4, 1969, Rome, Italy -

Italy 4 - 1 
Wales

November 22, 1969, Naples, Italy -

Italy 3 - 0 
East Germany

Rank	Team	Pts	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1	Italy	7	4	3	1	0	10	3
2	East Germany	5	4	2	1	1	7	7
3	Wales	0	4	0	0	4	3	10

Italy qualified.

UEFA Group 4

October 23, 1968, Belfast, Northern Ireland -

Northern Ireland 4 - 1 
Turkey

December 11, 1968, Istanbul, Turkey -

Turkey 0 - 3 
Northern Ireland

September 10, 1969, Belfast, Northern Ireland -

Northern Ireland 0 - 0 
USSR

October 15, 1969, Kiev, USSR -

USSR 3 - 0 
Turkey

October 22, 1969, Moscow, USSR -

USSR 2 - 0 
Northern Ireland

November 16, 1969, Istanbul, Turkey -

Turkey 1 - 3 
USSR

Rank	Team	Pts	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1	USSR	7	4	3	1	0	8	1
2	Northern Ireland	5	4	2	1	1	7	3
3	Turkey	0	4	0	0	4	2	13

USSR qualified.

UEFA Group 5

October 9, 1968, Stockholm, Sweden -

Sweden 5 - 0 
Norway

November 6, 1968, Strasbourg, France -

France 0 - 1 
Norway

June 19, 1969, Oslo, Norway -

Norway 2 - 5 
Sweden

September 10, 1969, Oslo, Norway -

Norway 1 - 3 
France

October 15, 1969, Stockholm, Sweden -

Sweden 2 - 0 
France

November 1, 1969, Paris, France -

France 3 - 0 
Sweden

Rank	Team	Pts	Pld	W	L	GF	GA
1	Sweden	6	4	3	1	12	5
2	France	4	4	2	2	6	4
3	Norway	2	4	1	3	4	13

Sweden qualified.

UEFA Group 6

June 19, 1968, Helsinki, Finland -

Finland 1 - 2 
Belgium

September 25, 1968, Belgrade, Yugoslavia -

Yugoslavia 9 - 1 
Finland

October 9, 1968, Waregem, Belgium -

Belgium 6 - 1 
Finland

October 16, 1968, Brussels, Belgium -

Belgium 3 - 0 
Yugoslavia

October 27, 1968, Belgrade, Yugoslavia -

Yugoslavia 0 - 0 
Spain

December 11, 1968, Madrid, Spain -

Spain 1 - 1 
Belgium

February 23, 1969, Liège, Belgium -

Belgium 2 - 1 
Spain

April 30, 1969, Barcelona, Spain -

Spain 2 - 1 
Yugoslavia

June 4, 1969, Helsinki, Finland -

Finland 1 - 5 
Yugoslavia

June 25, 1969, Helsinki, Finland -

Finland 2 - 0 
Spain

October 15, 1969, Cádiz, Spain -

Spain 6 - 0 
Finland

October 19, 1969, Skopje, Yugoslavia -

Yugoslavia 4 - 0 
Belgium

Rank	Team	Pts	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1	Belgium	9	6	4	1	1	14	8
2	Yugoslavia	7	6	3	1	2	19	7
3	Spain	6	6	2	2	2	10	6
4	Finland	2	6	1	0	5	6	28

Belgium qualified.

UEFA Group 7

May 19, 1968, Vienna, Austria -

Austria 7 - 1 
Cyprus

October 13, 1968, Vienna, Austria -

Austria 0 - 2 
West Germany

November 6, 1968, Glasgow, Scotland -

Scotland 2 - 1 
Austria

November 23, 1968, Nicosia, Cyprus -

Cyprus 0 - 1 
West Germany

December 11, 1968, Nicosia, Cyprus -

Cyprus 0 - 5 
Scotland

April 16, 1969, Glasgow, Scotland -

Scotland 1 - 1 
West Germany

April 19, 1969, Nicosia, Cyprus -

Cyprus 1 - 2 
Austria

May 10, 1969, Nuremberg, West Germany -

West Germany 1 - 0 
Austria

May 17, 1969, Glasgow, Scotland -

Scotland 8 - 0 
Cyprus

May 21, 1969, Essen, West Germany -

West Germany 12 - 0 
Cyprus

October 22, 1969, Hamburg, West Germany -

West Germany 3 - 2 
Scotland

November 5, 1969, Vienna, Austria -

Austria 2 - 0 
Scotland

Rank	Team	Pts	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1	West Germany	11	6	5	1	0	20	3
2	Scotland	7	6	3	1	2	18	7
3	Austria	6	6	3	0	3	12	7
4	Cyprus	0	6	0	0	6	2	35

West Germany qualified.

UEFA Group 8

September 4, 1968, Rotterdam, Netherlands -

Luxembourg 0 - 2 
Netherlands

This match was played at Netherlands instead of at Luxembourg.

October 27, 1968, Sofia, Bulgaria -

Bulgaria 2 - 0 
Netherlands

March 26, 1969, Rotterdam, Netherlands -

Netherlands 4 - 0 
Luxembourg

April 20, 1969, Krakow, Poland -

Poland 8 - 1 
Luxembourg

April 23, 1969, Sofia, Bulgaria -

Bulgaria 2 - 1 
Luxembourg

May 7, 1969, Rotterdam, Netherlands -

Netherlands 1 - 0 
Poland

June 15, 1969, Sofia, Bulgaria -

Bulgaria 4 - 1 
Poland

September 7, 1969, Chorzow, Poland -

Poland 2 - 1 
Netherlands

October 12, 1969, Luxembourg, Luxembourg -

Luxembourg 1 - 5 
Poland

October 22, 1969, Rotterdam, Netherlands -

Netherlands 1 - 1 
Bulgaria

November 9, 1969, Warsaw, Poland -

Poland 3 - 0 
Bulgaria

December 7, 1969, Luxembourg, Luxembourg -

Luxembourg 1 - 3 
Bulgaria

Rank	Team	Pts	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1	Bulgaria	9	6	4	1	1	12	7
2	Poland	8	6	4	0	2	19	8
3	Netherlands	7	6	3	1	2	9	5
4	Luxembourg	0	6	0	0	6	4	24

Bulgaria qualified.

South America

The 10 teams were divided into 3 groups; two groups with 3 teams and one group with 4 teams. The teams would play against each other on a home-and-away basis. The group winners would qualify.

CONMEBOL Group 1

July 27, 1969, La Paz, Bolivia -

Bolivia 3 - 1 
Argentina

August 3, 1969, Lima, Peru -

Peru 1 - 0 
Argentina

August 10, 1969, La Paz, Bolivia -

Bolivia 2 - 1 
Peru

August 17, 1969, Lima, Peru -

Peru 3 - 0 
Bolivia

August 24, 1969, Buenos Aires, Argentina -

Argentina 1 - 0 
Bolivia

August 31, 1969, Buenos Aires, Argentina -

Argentina 2 - 2 
Peru

Rank	Team	Pts	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1	Peru	5	4	2	1	1	7	4
2	Bolivia	4	4	2	0	2	5	6
3	Argentina	3	4	1	1	2	4	6

Peru qualified.

CONMEBOL Group 2

July 27, 1969, Bogotá, Colombia -

Colombia 3 - 0 
Venezuela

August 2, 1969, Caracas, Venezuela -

Venezuela 1 - 1 
Colombia

August 6, 1969, Caracas, Venezuela -

Venezuela 0 - 2 
Paraguay

August 6, 1969, Bogotá, Colombia -

Colombia 0 - 2 
Brazil

August 10, 1969, Caracas, Venezuela -

Venezuela 0 - 5 
Brazil

August 10, 1969, Bogotá, Colombia -

Colombia 0 - 1 
Paraguay

August 17, 1969, Asunción, Paraguay -

Paraguay 0 - 3 
Brazil

August 21, 1969, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil -

Brazil 6 - 2 
Colombia

August 21, 1969, Asunción, Paraguay -

Paraguay 1 - 0 
Venezuela

August 24, 1969, Asunción, Paraguay -

Paraguay 2 - 1 
Colombia

August 24, 1969, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil -

Brazil 6 - 0 
Venezuela

August 31, 1969, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil -

Brazil 1 - 0 
Paraguay

Rank	Team	Pts	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1	Brazil	12	6	6	0	0	23	2
2	Paraguay	8	6	4	0	2	6	5
3	Colombia	3	6	1	1	4	7	12
4	Venezuela	1	6	0	1	5	1	18

Brazil qualified.

CONMEBOL Group 3

July 6, 1969, Guayaquil, Ecuador -

Ecuador 0 - 2 
Uruguay

July 13, 1969, Santiago, Chile -

Chile 0 - 0 
Uruguay

July 20, 1969, Montevideo, Uruguay -

Uruguay 1 - 0 
Ecuador

July 27, 1969, Santiago, Chile -

Chile 4 - 1 
Ecuador

August 3, 1969, Guayaquil, Ecuador -

Ecuador 1 - 1 
Chile

August 10, 1969, Montevideo, Uruguay -

Uruguay 2 - 0 
Chile

Uruguay qualified.

North, Central America and Caribbean

There would be three rounds of play:

First Round: The 12 teams were divided into 4 groups of 3 teams each. The teams would play against each other on a home-and-away basis. The group winners would advance to the Semifinal Round.
Semifinal Round: The 4 teams were paired up to play knockout matches on a home-and-away basis. The winners would advance to the Final Round.
Final Round: The 2 teams would play against each other on a home-and-away basis. The winner would qualify.

CONCACAF First Round

Group 1

October 6, 1968, Toronto, Canada -

Canada 4 - 0 
Bermuda

October 13, 1968, Toronto, Canada -

Canada 4 - 2 
USA

October 20, 1968, Hamilton, Bermuda -

Bermuda 0 - 0 
Canada

October 26, 1968, Atlanta, USA -

USA 1 - 0 
Canada

November 3, 1968, Kansas City, USA -

USA 6 - 2 
Bermuda

November 11, 1968, Hamilton, Bermuda -

Bermuda 0 - 2 
USA

USA advanced to the Semifinal Round.

Group 2

All home matches of Trinidad and Tobago were played away instead.

November 17, 1968, Guatemala City, Guatemala -

Guatemala 4 - 0 
Trinidad and Tobago

November 20, 1968, Guatemala City, Guatemala -

Trinidad and Tobago 0 - 0 
Guatemala

November 23, 1968, Port au Prince, Haiti -

Trinidad and Tobago 0 - 4 
Haiti

November 25, 1968, Port au Prince, Haiti -

Haiti 2 - 4 
Trinidad and Tobago

December 8, 1968, Port au Prince, Haiti -

Haiti 2 - 0 
Guatemala

February 23, 1969, Guatemala City, Guatemala -

Guatemala 1 - 1 
Haiti

Haiti advanced to the Semifinal Round.

Group 3

All home matches of Jamaica were played away instead.

November 27, 1968, San José, Costa Rica -

Costa Rica 3 - 0 
Jamaica

December 1, 1968, San José, Costa Rica -

Jamaica 1 - 3 
Costa Rica

December 5, 1968, Tegucigalpa, Honduras -

Honduras 3 - 1 
Jamaica

December 8, 1968, Tegucigalpa, Honduras -

Jamaica 0 - 2 
Honduras

December 22, 1968, Tegucigalpa, Honduras -

Honduras 1 - 0 
Costa Rica

December 29, 1968, San José, Costa Rica -

Costa Rica 1 - 1 
Honduras

Honduras advanced to the Semifinal Round.

Group 4

November 24, 1968, Paramaribo, Dutch Guyana -

Dutch Guiana  6 - 0 
Netherlands Antilles

December 1, 1968, San Salvador, El Salvador -

El Salvador 6 - 0 
Dutch Guiana

December 5, 1968, Oranjestad, Netherlands Antilles -

Netherlands Antilles 2 - 0 
Dutch Guiana

December 12, 1968, San Salvador, El Salvador -

El Salvador 1 - 0 
Netherlands Antilles

December 15, 1968, San Salvador, El Salvador -

Netherlands Antilles 1 - 2 
El Salvador

This match was played in El Salvador instead of in Netherlands Antilles.

December 22, 1968, Paramaribo, Dutch Guyana -

Dutch Guiana 4 - 1 
El Salvador

El Salvador advanced to the Semifinal Round.

CONCACAF Semifinal Round

April 20, 1969, Port au Prince, Haiti -

Haiti 2 - 0 
USA

May 11, 1969, San Diego, USA -

USA 0 - 1 
Haiti

Haiti advanced to the Final Round.

June 8, 1969, Tegucigalpa, Honduras -

Honduras 1 - 0 
El Salvador

June 15, 1969, San Salvador, El Salvador -

El Salvador 3 - 0 
Honduras

With one win for either team, a play-off on neutral ground was played to decide who would advance to the Final Round.

June 26, 1969, Mexico City, Mexico -

El Salvador 3 - 2 (aet) 
Honduras

El Salvador advanced to the Final Round.

CONCACAF Final Round

September 21, 1969, Port au Prince, Haiti -

Haiti 1 - 2 
El Salvador

September 28, 1969, San Salvador, El Salvador -

El Salvador 0 - 3 
Haiti

With one win for either team, a play-off on neutral ground was played to decide who would qualify.

October 8, 1969, Kingston, Jamaica -

El Salvador 1 - 0 (aet) 
Haiti

El Salvador qualified.

Africa

There would be three rounds of play:

First Round: Ghana received a bye and advanced to the Second Round directly. The remaining 10 teams were paired up to play knockout matches on a home-and-away basis. The winners (determined by aggregate score) would advance to the Second Round.
Second Round: The 6 teams were paired up to play knockout matches on a home-and-away basis. The winners would advance to the Final Round.
Final Round: The 3 teams would play against each other on a home-and-away basis. The group winner would qualify.

CAF First Round

November 17, 1968, Algiers, Algeria -

Algeria 1 - 2 
Tunisia

December 29, 1968, Tunis, Tunisia -

Tunisia 0 - 0 
Algeria

Tunisia advanced to the Second Round.

November 3, 1968, Casablanca, Morocco -

Morocco 1 - 0 
Senegal

January 5, 1969, Dakar, Senegal -

Senegal 2 - 1 
Morocco

The aggregate score was tied, and since extra time was not played in the second match, a play-off on neutral ground was played to decide who would advance to the Second Round.

February 13, 1969, Las Palmas, Spain -

Morocco 2 - 0 
Senegal

Morocco advanced to the Second Round.

January 26, 1969, Tripoli, Libya -

Libya 2 - 0 
Ethiopia

February 9, 1969, Adis Abeba, Ethiopia -

Ethiopia 5 - 1 
Libya

Ethiopia advanced to the Second Round.

October 27, 1968, Ndola, Zambia -

Zambia 4 - 2 
Sudan

November 8, 1968, Khartoum, Sudan -

Sudan 4 - 2 (aet) 
Zambia

The aggregate score was tied, but Sudan advanced to the Second Round since they scored more goals in the second match.

December 7, 1968, Lagos, Nigeria -

Nigeria 1 - 1 
Cameroon

December 22, 1968, Douala, Cameroon -

Cameroon 2 - 3 
Nigeria

Nigeria advanced to the Second Round.

CAF Second Round

April 27, 1969, Tunis, Tunisia -

Tunisia 0 - 0 
Morocco

May 18, 1969, Casablanca, Morocco -

Morocco 0 - 0 (aet) 
Tunisia

The aggregate score was tied, and a play-off on neutral ground was played to decide who would advance to the Final Round.

June 13, 1969, Marseille, France -

Morocco 2 - 2 (aet) 
Tunisia

Morocco advanced to the Final Round by winning a coin toss.

May 4, 1969, Adis Abeba, Ethiopia -

Ethiopia 1 - 1 
Sudan

May 11, 1969, Khartoum, Sudan -

Sudan 3 - 1 
Ethiopia

Sudan advanced to the Final Round.

May 10, 1969, Ibadan, Nigeria -

Nigeria 2 - 1 
Ghana

May 18, 1969, Accra, Ghana -

Ghana 1 - 1 
Nigeria

Nigeria advanced to the Final Round.

CAF Final Round

September 13, 1969, Lagos, Nigeria -

Nigeria 2 - 2 
Sudan

September 21, 1969, Casablanca, Morocco -

Morocco 2 - 1 
Nigeria

October 3, 1969, Khartoum, Sudan -

Sudan 3 - 3 
Nigeria

October 10, 1969, Khartoum, Sudan -

Sudan 0 - 0 
Morocco

October 26, 1969, Casablanca, Morocco -

Morocco 3 - 0 
Sudan

November 8, 1969, Ibadan, Nigeria -

Nigeria 2 - 0 
Morocco

Morocco qualified.

Asia and Oceania

North Korea withdrew before the matches were played. There would be three rounds of play:

First Round: Israel, New Zealand and Rhodesia received byes and advanced to the Second Round directly. The remaining 3 teams, Australia, Japan and South Korea, would play against each other twice in South Korea. The group winner would advance to the Second Round.
Second Round: The 4 teams were divided into 2 groups of 2 teams each. The teams would play against each other twice. The group winners would advance to the Final Round.
Final Round: The 2 teams would play against each other on a home-and-away basis. The winner would qualify.

AFC / OFC First Round

October 10, 1969, Seoul, South Korea -

Australia 3 - 1 
Japan

October 12, 1969, Seoul, South Korea -

Japan 2 - 2 
Korea Republic

October 14, 1969, Seoul, South Korea -

Australia 2 - 1 
Korea Republic

October 16, 1969, Seoul, South Korea -

Japan 1 - 1 
Australia

October 18, 1969, Seoul, South Korea -

Korea Republic 2 - 0 
Japan

October 20, 1969, Seoul, South Korea -

Korea Republic 1 - 1 
Australia

Australia advanced to the Second Round.

AFC / OFC Second Round

Group 1

Both matches were played on neutral ground due to the boycott of Rhodesia.

November 23, 1969, Lourenço Marques, Mozambique -

Australia 1 - 1 
Rhodesia

November 27, 1969, Lourenço Marques, Mozambique -

Rhodesia 0 - 0 
Australia

With draws in both matches, a play-off was played to decide who would advance to the Final Round.

November 29, 1969, Lourenço Marques, Mozambique -

Australia 3 - 1 
Rhodesia

Australia advanced to the Final Round.

Group 2

Both matches were played in Israel.

September 28, 1969, Ramat Gan, Israel -

Israel 4 - 0 
New Zealand

October 1, 1969, Ramat Gan, Israel -

New Zealand 0 - 2 
Israel

Israel advanced to the Final Round.

AFC / OFC Final Round

December 4, 1969, Ramat Gan, Israel -

Israel 1 - 0 
Australia

December 14, 1969, Sydney, Australia -

Australia 1 - 1 
Israel

Israel qualified.

Qualified teams

(h) - qualified automatically as hosts

¹ Includes appearances by pre-division Germany. This is their 5th appearance as West Germany.

Notes

In the African zone, aggregate score was used to determine the winners of two-legged ties. However, different tie-breakers were used in the matches when the aggregate score was tied.
Morocco was the first African team to qualify since Egypt in the 1934 World Cup.
As a result of the hostile relationship between El Salvador and Honduras, and rioting during the qualification matches between them, the shortlived Football War broke out between the two countries.

External links

FIFA World Cup qualification
Italy 1934 \| France 1938 \| Brazil 1950 \| Switzerland 1954 \| Sweden 1958 \| Chile 1962 \| England 1966 \| Mexico 1970 \| West Germany 1974 \| Argentina 1978 \| Spain 1982 \| Mexico 1986 \| Italy 1990 \| USA 1994 \| France 1998 \| Korea/Japan 2002 \| Germany 2006

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