2018 World Cup: Super Eagles draw Djibouti, Swaziland
The Super Eagles of Nigeria have been drawn with the winner of the game between Djibouti and Swaziland in the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
In the draw ceremony at the Konstantinovsky Palace, St Petersburg, the three-time Africa champions is one of the African teams that have been seeded so they are safely into the second round of the African qualifiers.
Fifty-three African countries were in the draw, with only Zimbabwe missing following their expulsion by FIFA for failing to pay a former coach.
Africa has been allocated five spots in the finals, which will be played in Russia from 14 June 14 to July 15.
There will be three rounds of qualifying for the African sides.
FIRST ROUND
13 two-legged ties, played home and away between October 5-13, 2015:
- Somalia v Niger
- South Sudan v Mauritania
- Gambia v Namibia
- Sao Tome e Principe v Ethiopia
- Chad v Sierra Leone
- Comoros v Lesotho
- Djibouti v Swaziland
- Eritrea v Botswana
- Seychelles v Burundi
- Liberia v Guinea Bissau
- Central African Republic v Madagascar
- Mauritius v Kenya
- Tanzania v Malawi
SECOND ROUND
The winners of the first round plus 27 highest-ranked teams in Africa will meet in this round.
All 40 teams will be paired into 20 ties, played home and away between November 9-17, 2015.
Winner 1 v Cameroon
Winner 11 v Senegal
Winner 2 v Tunisia
Winner 12 v Cape Verde Islands
Winner 3 v Guinea
Winner 13 v Algeria
Winner 4 v Congo Brazzaville
Sudan v Zambia
Winner 5 v Egypt
Libya v Rwanda
Winner 6 v Ghana
Morocco v Equatorial Guinea
Winner 7 v Nigeria
Mozambique v Gabon
Winner 8 v Mali
Benin v Burkina Faso
Winner 9 v Democratic Republic of Congo
Togo v Uganda
Winner 10 v Ivory Coast
Angola v South Africa
THIRD ROUND
Twenty winners of the second round will form five groups of four teams who will meet both home and away.
The matches will be played between October 3, 2016 and November 14, 2017.
The five group winners qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.
In total, 141 teams were drawn in Saturday’s ceremony.
Here’s the full draw from across the world:
EUROPE
Group A
Netherlands, France, Sweden, Bulgaria, Belarus, Luxembourg
Group B
Portugal, Switzerland, Hungary, Faroe Islands, Latvia, Andorra
Group C
Germany, Czech Republic, Northern Ireland, Norway, Azerbaijan, San Marino
Group D
Wales , Austria, Serbia, Republic of Ireland, Moldova, Georgia
Group E
Romania, Denmark, Poland, Montenegro, Armenia, Kazakhstan
Group F
England, Slovakia, Scotland, Slovenia, Lithuania, Malta
Group G
Spain, Italy, Albania, Israel, FYR Macedonia, Liechtenstein
Group H
Belgium, Bosnia-Hercegovina, Greece, Estonia, Cyprus
Group I
Croatia, Iceland, Ukraine, Turkey, Finland
Nine group winners qualify. Eight runners-up with the best record against the teams first, third, fourth and fifth in their groups proceed to play-offs. Russia automatically qualify as hosts.
CONCACAF
Third round
Two-legged ties, played from August 31st to September 8th.
Curacao v El Salvador, Canada v Belize, Grenada v Haiti, Jamaica v Nicaragua, St Vincent & Grenadines v Aruba, Antigua & Barbuda v Guatemala
Group A
Honduras, Mexico, Curacao/El Salvador, Canada/Belize
Group B
Panama, Costa Rica, Grenada/Haiti, Jamaica/Nicaragua
Group C
Trinidad & Tobago, USA, St Vincent & Grenadines/Aruba, Antigua & Barbuda/Guatemala
The top two teams from each group will play in a six-team mini-league. The top three qualify and the fourth goes into an inter-continental play-off.
OCEANIA
Round one (group stage)
American Samoa, Cook Islands, Samoa, Tonga
Round two (group stage)
Group A
Winner of round one between American Samoa, Cook Islands, Samoa and Tonga. Plus Papua New Guinea, New Caledonia, Tahiti
Group B
New Zealand, Vanuatu, Fiji, Solomon Islands
The top three teams in Group A and Group B progress to round three. That will comprise of two groups of three, with the top team in each progressing to a two-legged play-off. The winners of that qualify for the inter-continental play-off.
SOUTH AMERICA
Group stage
Colombia, Chile, Paraguay, Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, Venezuela, Bolivia, Peru, Uruguay
Top four automatically qualify. Fifth place goes into a play-off.
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