Background CONCACAF

CONCACAF is the rather lengthy abbreviation for the area that cover North America and those sunny islands to its right. They get three slots, and two of them are always filled by Mexico and the USA. Someone like Costa Rica gets the other one. They also have one extra play off slot, which will be, randomly drawn this time, against a team from Asia, Oceania or South America. They'll be hoping it isn't the later.

The big boys of this region don't have to play any qualifiers until the third of the four rounds of qualification. "Big boys" is used pretty losely there, as it includes Cuba. The full list of these teams-

1. United States
2. Mexico
3. Honduras
4. Jamaica
5. Costa Rica
6. Cuba

If you are a bit more tinpot a nation than Cuba (who prefer baseball anyway), but are more successful than the likes of Aruba, you enter in the Second Round of qualifying-

7. Panama
8. Canada
9. El Salvador
10. Grenada
11. Trinidad and Tobago
12. Haiti
13. Antigua and Barbuda
14. Guyana
15. Suriname
16. Saint Kitts and Nevis
17. Guatemala
18. Dominica
19. Puerto Rico
20. Barbados
21. Curaçao
22. Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
23. Cayman Islands
24. Nicaragua
25. Bermuda

As you can see, this is hardly a selection the worlds finest sides. The Canadians didn't rebel against us, but they didn't exactly embrace the national sport either. Suriname, on the other hand, have produced many great footballers, including Frank Rijkaard, Ruud Guillit and Edgar Davids. And pretty much any black guy whose played for Holland. The benefits of colonialism plain to see. I don't know if all these countries ever considered teaming up, like they do in cricket. They probably have a half decent team between them, and this qualification process would be a thousand times quicker and simpler. But then of course we wouldn't get three years of world cup preparation to enjoy.

The real dregs of the region have to start in the first round-

26. Belize
27. Dominican Republic
28. British Virgin Islands
29. Saint Lucia
30. Turks and Caicos Islands
31. Bahamas
32. Aruba
33. U.S. Virgin Islands
34. Anguilla
35. Montserrat

To be fair to these sides, most of them a pretty small islands, there are some of the smallest nation states in the world right there. All these teams have to play one set of home and away against each other, and the winners go through to take part in the six groups of four that comprise the Second round of qualifying. Win that group and you get to meet the real giants of the region in the Third qualifying round, three groups of four. Get one of the top two spots in that group and you get to go on to the fourth round of qualifying, a super group. Get fourth place and you get a play off against hopefully not a team from South America. Get in the top three, and you're in the World Cup!

In other words, Montserrat have a long way to go.