Lionel Messi and Argentina have booked their place at the 2018 Fifa World Cup - but a number of major nations failed to qualify for next year’s finals in Russia.
Following their 3-1 victory against Ecuador last night, Argentina join Brazil, Uruguay and Colombia in qualifying automatically from the South American group. Fifth-placed Peru will now play New Zealand in a two-legged intercontinental play-off.
Meanwhile, the Chile and Paraguay sides are heartbroken after failing to qualify for Russia.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.
Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.
Latest Videos FromThe Week
US suffer shock elimination
Panama are through to play in their first World Cup finals, but the US will miss out after a dramatic evening in the Concacaf region.
The US team only needed a point from their match against Trinidad and Tobago to qualify, yet suffered a 2-1 defeat that took them from third to fifth in the table.
Panama’s 2-1 win over the already-qualified Costa Rica means both teams join Mexico as one of the three automatic qualifiers. In the play-offs, Honduras will play Australia.
Dutch miss out
In Europe, France and Portugal sealed their places by topping Group A and Group B respectively.
But Holland, who finished third at the 2014 World Cup, were knocked out. The Dutch side finished third in Group A, behind France and Sweden.
Europe’s eight play-off contenders are Sweden, Switzerland, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland, Denmark, Italy, Greece and Croatia. Four of the sides will be seeded.
Places still up for grabs in Africa
In Africa, five teams go through. Egypt and Nigeria have already qualified, while Tunisia, Morocco and Senegal currently top the other groups.
2018 World Cup: key dates
The draw for the play-offs is on 17 October, and the two-leg ties will be played from 6-14 November. Once all qualifiers are decided, the main draw for the 2018 World Cup will take place in Moscow on 1 December at the State Kremlin Palace.
- 17 October: play-off draw for Europe
- 1 December: main draw
- 14 June-15 July 2018: 2018 World Cup
Who has qualified for the 2018 World Cup so far?
- Africa: Egypt, Nigeria
- Asia: Iran, Japan, Saudi Arabia, South Korea
- Europe: Belgium, England, France, Germany, Iceland, Poland, Portugal, Russia (hosts), Serbia, Spain
- North, Central America and Caribbean: Costa Rica, Mexico, Panama
- South America: Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Uruguay
Who are in the World Cup play-offs?
- Europe: Sweden, Switzerland, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland, Denmark, Italy, Greece, Croatia
- Concacaf/Asia play-off: Honduras vs. Australia
- South America/Oceania play-off: Peru vs. New Zealand
