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A total of 37 teams entered the 1954 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds, competing for a total of 16 spots in the final tournament. Switzerland, as the hosts, and Uruguay, as the defending champions, qualified automatically, leaving 14 spots open for competition.
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Teams | 37 (from 3 confederations) |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 57 |
| Goals scored | 208 (3.65 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) |  Max Morlock (6 goals) |
← 1950 1958 → | |
37 teams were divided into 13 groups, based on geographical considerations, as follows:
- Groups 1 to 10 – Europe: 11 places, contested by 27 teams (including Egypt and Israel).
- Group 11 and 12 – The Americas: 2 places, contested by 7 teams.
- Group 13 – Asia: 1 place, contested by 3 teams.
A total of 33 teams played at least one qualifying match. A total of 57 qualifying matches were played, and 208 goals were scored (an average of 3.65 per match).
Listed below are the dates and results of the qualification rounds.
The 13 groups had different rules, as follows:
- Groups 1, 2, 4, 7, 8, and 10 had 3 teams each. The teams played against each other on a home-and-away basis. The group winners would qualify.
- Groups 5, 6 and 9 had 2 teams each. The teams played against each other on a home-and-away basis. The group winners would qualify.
- Group 3 had 4 teams. The teams played against each other once. The group winner and runner-up would qualify.
- Group 11 had 4 teams. The teams played against each other on a home-and-away basis. The group winner would qualify.
- Group 12 had 3 teams. The teams played against each other twice. The group winner would qualify.
- Group 13 had 3 teams. After Republic of China withdrew before the matches began, the remaining 2 teams played against each other twice. The group winner would qualify.
Group 1
| Pos. | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West Germany |
4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 3 | +9 | 7 |
| 2 |  Saar |
4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 8 | −4 | 3 |
| 3 |  Norway |
4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 9 | −5 | 2 |
| Norway | 1–1 | West Germany |
|---|---|---|
Hennum  41' |
Report | F. Walter 44' |
| West Germany | 3–0 | Saar |
|---|---|---|
| Morlock 13', 50' Schade 70' |
Report |
West Germany qualified.
Group 2
Sweden  | 2–3 |  Belgium |
|---|---|---|
| Bengtsson 20' Selmosson 26' |
Report | Anoul 28' Straetmans 37'Lemberechts 40' |
Belgium qualified. This was the first time Sweden failed to qualify.
Group 3
This group was also the 1953–54 British Home Championship.
| Pos. | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  England |
3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 4 | +7 | 6 |
| 2 |  Scotland |
3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 3 |
| 3 |  Northern Ireland |
3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 7 | −3 | 2 |
| 4 |  Wales |
3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 9 | −4 | 1 |
| Wales | 1–2 | Northern Ireland |
|---|---|---|
| Charles 80' |
Report | McParland 1', 52' |
England and Scotland qualified.
Group 4
| Pos. | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  France |
4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 4 | +16 | 8 |
| 2 |  Republic of Ireland |
4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 6 | +2 | 4 |
| 3 |  Luxembourg |
4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 19 | −18 | 0 |
Referee: Dörflinger (Switzerland)
Referee: Franken (Belgium)
| Republic of Ireland | 4–0 | Luxembourg |
|---|---|---|
| Fitzsimons 14', 83' Ryan 48' (pen.)Eglington 59' |
Report |
| France | 1–0 | Republic of Ireland |
|---|---|---|
| Piantoni 73' |
Report |
Referee: Van Nuffel (Belgium)
| France | 8–0 | Luxembourg |
|---|---|---|
| Desgranges 2', 88' Vincent 6', 10'Fontaine 21', 75', 80'Foix 57' |
Report |
Referee: Roeykens (Belgium)
| Luxembourg | 0–1 | Republic of Ireland |
|---|---|---|
| Report | Cummins 67' |
Referee: Ausum (Netherlands)
France qualified.
Group 5
Referee: Bauwens (Belgium)
Referee: Harzic (France)
Austria qualified.
Group 6
Referee: Vincentini (France)
Referee: Schmetzer (West Germany)
Spain and Turkey finished level on points, and a play-off on neutral ground was played to decide who would qualify.
Referee: Bernardi (Italy)
Luigi Franco Gemma, a 14-year-old Italian boy whose father worked at the stadium, picked Turkey's name from the lots with his eyes blindfolded.[1][2] Therefore, Turkey qualified. This is the first time Spain failed to qualify.
Since the 1970 FIFA World Cup finals, goal difference has been used as a tiebreaker for future qualifying rounds. Had those rules been in place, Spain would have qualified, and Turkey would have been eliminated. This was the only time winner of aggregate score failed to qualify.
Group 7
Poland withdrew and Iceland had their entry rejected so Hungary qualified automatically.
Group 8
| Pos. | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Czechoslovakia |
4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | +4 | 7 |
| 2 |  Romania |
4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 4 |
| 3 |  Bulgaria |
4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 7 | −4 | 1 |
| Czechoslovakia | 2–0 | Romania |
|---|---|---|
| Pažický 54' Vlk 63' |
Report |
| Romania | 0–1 | Czechoslovakia |
|---|---|---|
| Report | Šafránek 38' (pen.) |
Czechoslovakia qualified. This was the first time Romania failed to qualify.
Group 9
Egypt  | 1–2 |  Italy |
|---|---|---|
| Ad-Diba 33' |
Frignani 62' Muccinelli 79' |
| Italy | 5–1 | Egypt |
|---|---|---|
| Pandolfini 1' Frignani 62'Boniperti 65', 86'Ricagni 84' |
El-Hamouly 32' |
Italy qualified.
Group 10
| Pos. | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Yugoslavia |
4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | +4 | 8 |
| 2 |  Greece |
4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 2 | +1 | 4 |
| 3 |  Israel |
4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 5 | −5 | 0 |
| Yugoslavia | 1–0 | Greece |
|---|---|---|
| Matošić 71' |
Report |
| Yugoslavia | 1–0 | Israel |
|---|---|---|
| Milutinović 3' |
Report |
| Israel | 0–2 | Greece |
|---|---|---|
| Report | Kokkinakis 61' Kamaras 83' |
| Israel | 0–1 | Yugoslavia |
|---|---|---|
| Report | Zebec 80' |
| Greece | 0–1 | Yugoslavia |
|---|---|---|
| Report | Veselinović 50' |
Yugoslavia qualified.
Group 11
Paraguay  | 4–0 |  Chile |
|---|---|---|
| Lugo 30' J. Parodi 52'Hermosilla 70'S. Parodi 79' |
Referee: Steiner (Austria)
Referee: Vincentini (France)
Referee: Vincentini (France)
Referee: Steiner (Austria)
Referee: Steiner (Austria)
Referee: Vincentini (France)
Brazil qualified. Despite having participated in every World Cup, this was the first time they played qualifying matches.
Group 12
| Pos. | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Mexico |
4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 1 | +18 | 8 |
| 2 |  United States |
4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 9 | −2 | 4 |
| 3 |  Haiti |
4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 18 | −16 | 0 |
| 4 |  Costa Rica |
Entry rejected | |||||||
| 5 |  Cuba |
Entry rejected | |||||||
Referee: Crawford (England)
Referee: Van Rosberg (Netherlands Antilles)
Referee: Sunderland (England)
| Mexico | 3–1 | United States |
|---|---|---|
| A. Torres 60', 89' Lamadrid 82' |
Looby 6' |
Referee: Best (United States)
Referee: Van Rosberg (Netherlands Antilles)
| Haiti | 0–3 | United States |
|---|---|---|
| Looby 22', 65' Mendoza 31' |
Referee: Van Rosberg (Netherlands Antilles)
Mexico qualified.
Group 13
| Pos. | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  South Korea |
2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 3 | +4 | 3 |
| 2 |  Japan |
2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 7 | −4 | 1 |
| 3 |  Republic of China |
Withdrew | |||||||
| 4 |  India |
Entry rejected | |||||||
| 5 |  Vietnam |
Entry rejected | |||||||
| Japan | 1–5 | South Korea |
|---|---|---|
| Naganuma 16' |
Chung Nam-sik 22', 83' Choi Kwang-suk 34'Choi Chung-min 68', 87' |
| South Korea | 2–2 | Japan |
|---|---|---|
| Chung Nam-sik 20' Choi Chung-min 43' |
Iwatani 17', 61' |
South Korea qualified.
| Team | Date of qualification | Finals appearance | Streak | Last appearance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Austria |
29 November 1953 | 3rd | 1 | 1938 |
| Belgium |
8 October 1953 | 4th | 1 | 1938 |
 Brazil |
21 March 1954 | 5th | 5 | 1950 |
| Czechoslovakia |
25 October 1953 | 3rd | 1 | 1938 |
| England |
11 November 1953 | 2nd | 2 | 1950 |
| France |
25 November 1953 | 4th | 1 | 1938 |
 Hungary (w) |
3rd | 1 | 1938 | |
| Italy |
24 January 1954 | 4th | 4 | 1950 |
| South Korea |
14 March 1954 | 1st | 1 | — |
| Mexico |
14 January 1954 | 3rd | 2 | 1950 |
| Scotland |
31 March 1954 | 1st | 1 | — |
 Switzerland (h) |
22 July 1946 | 4th | 4 | 1950 |
 Turkey |
17 March 1954 | 1st | 1 | — |
 Uruguay (c) |
16 July 1950 | 3rd | 2 | 1950 |
| West Germany |
28 March 1954 | 3rd | 1 | 1938 |
| Yugoslavia |
28 March 1954 | 3rd | 2 | 1950 |
(h) – qualified automatically as hosts
(c) – qualified automatically as defending champions
(w) – qualified automatically because Poland withdrew
- 6 goals
- 5 goals
- 4 goals
- 3 goals
- František Vlk
- Nat Lofthouse
Kalevi Lehtovirta- Just Fontaine
- Pedro Arnauda
- Manuel Lugo
- Choi Chung-min
- Chung Nam-sik
- John Charles
- 2 goals
- Léopold Anoul
- Mathieu Bollen
- Júlio Botelho
- Harold Hassall
- Dennis Wilshaw
- Olavi Lahtinen
- Jean Desgranges
- Pierre Flamion
- Léon Glovacki
- Roger Piantoni
- Joseph Ujlaki
- Jean Vincent
- Gerard Ellie
- Arthur Fitzsimons
- Reg Ryan
- Giampiero Boniperti
- Amleto Frignani
- Toshio Iwatani
- Alfredo Torres
- Peter McParland
- José Parodi
- József Pecsovszky
- Allan Brown
- Charlie Fleming
- Burhan Sargın
- Ivor Allchurch
- Fritz Walter
- 1 goal
- Robert Dienst
- Ernst Happel
- Ernst Ocwirk
- Theodor Wagner
- Victor Lemberechts
- Victor Mees
- Jean-Louis Straetmans
- Maurinho
- Stefan Bozhkov
- Ivan Kolev
- Dobromir Tashkov
- Ted Robledo
- Emil Pažický
- František Šafránek
- Ad-Diba
- Alaa El-Hamouly
- Ronnie Allen
- Ivor Broadis
- Jimmy Mullen
- Johnny Nicholls
- Nils Rikberg
- Jorma Vaihela
- Raymond Cicci
- Jacques Foix
- Édouard Kargu
- Raymond Kopa
- Armand Penverne
- Thanasis Bembis
- Georgios Kamaras
- Dimitris Kokkinakis
- George Cummins
- Tommy Eglington
- Frank O'Farrell
- Davy Walsh
- Ermes Muccinelli
- Egisto Pandolfini
- Eduardo Ricagni
- Ken Naganuma
- Antoine Kohn
- Rafael Ávalos
- Gregorio Gómez
- José Naranjo
- Nicolás Tellez
- Norman Lockhart
- Eddie McMorran
- Knut Dahlen
- Harald Hennum
- Hans Nordahl
- Gunnar Thoresen
- Ireneo Hermosilla
- Eulogio Martínez
- Silvio Parodi
José Águas- Valeriu Călinoiu
- Alexandru Ene
- Gavril Serfözö
- Herbert Binkert
- Herbert Martin
- Werner Otto
- Gerhard Siedl
- Jackie Henderson
- Bobby Johnstone
- Willie Ormond
- Lawrence Reilly
- Choi Kwang-suk
Rafael Alsua- José Artetxe
- Adrián Escudero
- Agustín Gaínza
- Miguel González
- Venancio García
- Bengt Berndtsson
- Hans Persson
- Gösta Sandberg
- Herbert Sandin
- Arne Selmosson
- Recep Adanır
- Suat Mamat
- Cornelius Casey
- Efrain Chacurian
- Ruben Mendoza
- Helmut Rahn
- Horst Schade
- Hans Schäfer
- Ottmar Walter
- Frane Matošić
- Miloš Milutinović
- Todor Veselinović
- Branko Zebec
- 1 own goal
- William Scheppel (playing against Mexico)
- Turkey qualified via the drawing of lots, after they and Spain finished level on points in Group 6 and a drawn play-off match in Rome.
- For the first time, qualification matches were actually played in South America; in the four previous World Cups, the South American teams qualified automatically due to withdrawals (in the case of 1934) or through the South American Football Championship (for the 1938 and 1950 tournaments), while there was no qualifying process in 1930. Argentina did not take part in the qualification process.
- As the French-occupied Saarland protectorate did not become part of Germany until 1957, the Saarland national team entered their only World Cup competition and actually had to play Germany in the qualifiers.
- The entries of Bolivia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Iceland, India and South Vietnam were rejected by FIFA.[3]
- After being banned from the 1950 tournament following the Second World War, Germany and Japan were both allowed to play again. West Germany qualified and became champions after defeating Hungary with a score of 3–2 in the final that became known as the Miracle of Bern.
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