2006 FIFA World Cup qualification
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Teams | 197 (from 6 confederations) |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 847 |
| Goals scored | 2464 (2.91 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) |
 Jared Borgetti(14 goals) |
A total of 197 teams entered the qualification process for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, competing for a total of 32 spots in the final tournament. Germany, as the host, qualified automatically, leaving 31 spots open for competition. Starting with these qualifiers, the defending champion (Brazil) was not granted automatic qualification for the first time, as France's disappointing performance and first round elimination in the previous tournament was considered to be due to lack of preparation that the qualifiers could have provided. The final distribution was as follows:
Each .5 indicates a place in inter-confederation matchups for the last two spots, namely play-offs between AFC and CONCACAF and between CONMEBOL and OFC.
A total of 194 teams played at least one qualifying match. A total of 847 qualifying matches were played, and 2464 goals were scored (an average of 2.91 per match).
For the first time ever, the defending champion (Brazil) did not qualify automatically. The hosts (Germany) retained their automatic spot. In 1934, the defending champions (Uruguay) declined to participate and the hosts (Italy) had to qualify, but in the tournaments between 1938 and 2002 (inclusive), the hosts and the defending champions had automatic berths.
The original distribution of places between the six confederations called for Oceania to be given one full spot in the final 32; this idea was seen as virtually guaranteeing a place in the finals to Australia, by far the strongest footballing nation in the region. This decision was reconsidered in June 2003 and the previous distribution of places between Oceania and South America was restored.
The draw for five of the six qualification tournaments took place on 5 December 2003 in Frankfurt, whilst all of the members of the South American federation (CONMEBOL) competed in a single group. Qualification itself began in January 2004.
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