2018 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA)
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| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | 4 September 2016 – 14 November 2017 |
| Teams | 54 (from 1 confederation) |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 108 |
| Goals scored | 332 (3.07 per match) |
| Attendance | 2,150,570 (19,913 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) |
 Robert Lewandowski Cristiano Ronaldo(7 goals each) |
The European section of the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification will act as qualifiers for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, to be held in Russia, for national teams which are members of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). Apart from Russia, who qualify automatically as hosts, a total of 13 slots in the final tournament are available for UEFA teams.
The qualifying format was confirmed by the UEFA Executive Committee meeting on 22–23 March 2015 in Vienna.
UEFA unveiled the branding for the qualifiers on 15 April 2013. It shows a national jersey inside a heart, and represents Europe, honour and ambition. The same branding was also used for the European qualifiers for the UEFA Euro 2016.
The qualification structure is as follows:
With the admission of Gibraltar and Kosovo as FIFA members in May 2016, both national teams were eligible to make their debuts in World Cup qualifying. With two groups of only five teams in the first round, Kosovo was assigned to Group I as it was decided that Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia should not play against Kosovo for security reasons, and Gibraltar was then added to Group H.
Apart from Russia, which qualified automatically as hosts, all remaining 52 FIFA-affiliated national teams from UEFA at the registration deadline of January 2015 entered qualification.
Gibraltar, despite being a UEFA member since 2013, was not a FIFA member at the time of the registration deadline, and thus was not eligible to enter qualification for the FIFA World Cup. They appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport to challenge FIFA's refusal to grant membership in order to enter World Cup qualifying. In May 2016, the CAS found in Gibraltar's favour and ordered that FIFA put Gibraltar forward for FIFA membership, which would permit Gibraltar to take part in the qualifiers if membership was granted.
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