It took almost a century to finish building the Constantine Palace in St. Petersburg. However, it should only take a couple of hours to complete the draw for the 2018 World Cup, to be held at the luxurious estate of the Russian government. "The Dream" is the theme that the organisers of the qualifying draw have given the first official event of the 2018 FIFA tournament.
It was already a dream for some footballing nations to have the chance to fight for one of the 31 places at the tournament, whereas for others the only dream is the trophy itself. 2,000 guests and 700 media representatives from all over the world are expected for the draw on Saturday, which will be broadcast live in over 100 countries.
The draw also represents a number of firsts for Die Mannschaft after winning their fourth star – it is the first time a Germany team defending their title will have to enter the qualifying stage for the next World Cup. In 1994, the team that won in Rome were guaranteed a place in the competition proper, but the heroes from Rio will have to qualify for the 2018 tournament in Russia.
Legends like Ronaldo will make the draw
The Germany national team could even be drawn against France, who they defeated in last year’s quarter-final in Brazil, or their old enemy Italy. A draw against such strong opponents is possible because the qualifying draw is made using the most current FIFA World Rankings – last year’s runners-up Argentina currently top the rankings and not the defending world champions. Despite this, Germany will still be placed in Pot 1, whilst Italy and France, currently ranked 17th and 22nd respectively, will be in Pot 2.
National team general manager Oliver Bierhoff will be present at the draw, but not just as a spectator – as well as leading the DFB delegation alongside Helmut Sandrock, Bierhoff will be joining FIFA General Secretary Jérôme Valcke in making the draw itself. He’s in the best possible company, too – also taking part are former Brazil striker Ronaldo and ex-Italy captain Fabio Cannavaro, both former world champions, as well as the Uruguayan Diego Forlan, Cameroon striker Samuel Eto’o and Russian players Rinat Dassajew und Alexander Kerschakow.
Löw is "only focusing on qualifying for the EUROs"
"Even though our main focus is at the moment is on qualification for the European Championship, I’m looking forward to the draw and to getting a first impression of Russia as hosts," said Oliver Bierhoff. "In Brazil it really helped that we were able to get a good feel of the country and the people way before the tournament began. It’s a good opportunity for us to get to know the important people connected with the tournament in person, especially as we’ll be playing in Russia as soon as 2017 for the Confederations Cup. Obviously in a footballing sense the European Championship is our only focus, but in terms of planning and organisation we’re looking a lot further ahead than just 2016."
"A World Cup qualifying draw is a huge highlight for any country hosting a tournament that features over 200 nations," added Helmut Sandrock. "We know that from hosting the 2006 World Cup. I’m sure that Russia will do a good job – we’ve already seen that from the Winter Olympics in Sochi, and we’ll see it again this weekend in St. Petersburg."
Germany manager Joachim Löw is however only thinking about qualification for the European Championship next year. "At the moment I’m only focusing on qualifying for the EUROs – next spring will be the most important phase of qualification," he said. "The tournament in France is obviously taking priority for us – the World Cup is still a long way off. But I can understand that we need to start making logistical plans now. We’ll make an appearance at the draw, but we won’t think or worry about what it brings until a later date."
It took almost a century to finish building the Constantine Palace in St. Petersburg. However, it should only take a couple of hours to complete the draw for the 2018 World Cup, to be held at the luxurious estate of the Russian government. "The Dream" is the theme that the organisers of the qualifying draw have given the first official event of the 2018 FIFA tournament.
It was already a dream for some footballing nations to have the chance to fight for one of the 31 places at the tournament, whereas for others the only dream is the trophy itself. 2,000 guests and 700 media representatives from all over the world are expected for the draw on Saturday, which will be broadcast live in over 100 countries.
The draw also represents a number of firsts for Die Mannschaft after winning their fourth star – it is the first time a Germany team defending their title will have to enter the qualifying stage for the next World Cup. In 1994, the team that won in Rome were guaranteed a place in the competition proper, but the heroes from Rio will have to qualify for the 2018 tournament in Russia.
Legends like Ronaldo will make the draw
The Germany national team could even be drawn against France, who they defeated in last year’s quarter-final in Brazil, or their old enemy Italy. A draw against such strong opponents is possible because the qualifying draw is made using the most current FIFA World Rankings – last year’s runners-up Argentina currently top the rankings and not the defending world champions. Despite this, Germany will still be placed in Pot 1, whilst Italy and France, currently ranked 17th and 22nd respectively, will be in Pot 2.
National team general manager Oliver Bierhoff will be present at the draw, but not just as a spectator – as well as leading the DFB delegation alongside Helmut Sandrock, Bierhoff will be joining FIFA General Secretary Jérôme Valcke in making the draw itself. He’s in the best possible company, too – also taking part are former Brazil striker Ronaldo and ex-Italy captain Fabio Cannavaro, both former world champions, as well as the Uruguayan Diego Forlan, Cameroon striker Samuel Eto’o and Russian players Rinat Dassajew und Alexander Kerschakow.
Löw is "only focusing on qualifying for the EUROs"
"Even though our main focus is at the moment is on qualification for the European Championship, I’m looking forward to the draw and to getting a first impression of Russia as hosts," said Oliver Bierhoff. "In Brazil it really helped that we were able to get a good feel of the country and the people way before the tournament began. It’s a good opportunity for us to get to know the important people connected with the tournament in person, especially as we’ll be playing in Russia as soon as 2017 for the Confederations Cup. Obviously in a footballing sense the European Championship is our only focus, but in terms of planning and organisation we’re looking a lot further ahead than just 2016."
"A World Cup qualifying draw is a huge highlight for any country hosting a tournament that features over 200 nations," added Helmut Sandrock. "We know that from hosting the 2006 World Cup. I’m sure that Russia will do a good job – we’ve already seen that from the Winter Olympics in Sochi, and we’ll see it again this weekend in St. Petersburg."
Germany manager Joachim Löw is however only thinking about qualification for the European Championship next year. "At the moment I’m only focusing on qualifying for the EUROs – next spring will be the most important phase of qualification," he said. "The tournament in France is obviously taking priority for us – the World Cup is still a long way off. But I can understand that we need to start making logistical plans now. We’ll make an appearance at the draw, but we won’t think or worry about what it brings until a later date."
World Cup, EUROs, World Cup
Ronaldo as a good-luck charm – really? Obviously, in the 2002 final the Brazilian goal machine broke German hearts as he left Oliver Kahn with no chance not once, but twice. But nine years later, the same Ronaldo stood in the stunning Marina da Gloria in Rio de Janeiro and drew Germany out of Pot 1 into Group C – a group that Die Mannschaft won over the USA, which eventually led to the national team lifting the World Cup trophy aloft in the hometown of the striker who denied Germany the title 13 years earlier.
But after the World Cup, and before the next World Cup, comes the European Championship. It sounds like quite a mundane thing to say, but it’s true. Just eight weeks after the victory in Rio, Die Mannschaft began the qualification stage for the 2016 EUROs with a 2-1 win over Scotland. And, true to fashion, qualification for the 2018 World Cup will begin just two months after the European Championship final in Saint Denis.
Over 840 games on the road to 2018
13 European teams will gain a place in the tournament, whilst Russia gain automatic qualification as hosts. One country Germany will not be drawn against is Gibraltar, who are currently in the same EUROs qualifying group as Die Mannschaft. The British colony is not being officially recognised by FIFA and will not take part in World Cup qualification. That leaves 52 UEFA nations to be divided into seven qualifying groups of six, with two groups of just five teams.
"St. Petersburg is the perfect place to make the first step on the long journey to the FIFA World Cup Finals," declared FIFA General Secretary Jérôme Valcke. "Over 840 games will take place until we know the final 32 teams that will play out the tournament in Russia."
The nine group winners will progress to the tournament proper along with the winners of the play-offs to be played between the eight best second-placed finishers. Therefore finishing second in the group could still end in success. In September 2016, the hunt for the fifth star begins.
