The Organising Committee for the 2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan", meeting on 28 November in the coastal city of Busan in Korea under the chairmanship of FIFA Vice President and UEFA President Lennart Johansson, decided to retain a virtually similar seeding system for the 2002 event as four years ago for France 1998 and put Brazil, Argentina, Italy, Germany and Spain as top seeds for the Final Draw on Saturday 1 December, together with the ex officio qualified teams of hosts Korea and Japan and titleholder France.

By Brian Homewood
© Reuters Limited

A 3-1 aggregate scoreline left the hapless Socceroos to contemplate another heart-breaking failure.

By Mike Collett
© Reuters Limited

As if that was not a tough enough encounter, former African and Olympic champions Nigeria and hard-to-beat Sweden complete the quartet in group F which will now inevitably be dubbed the "group of death."

© Reuters Limited

Iran scored in injury time with a header from Yahya Golmohammadi but it was too little, too late and Ireland, who won the first leg 2-0 on Saturday, will be travelling to South Korea and Japan next year.

Ireland are the 31st of the 32 teams to qualify for the finals. They will be playing in their third World Cup after 1990 and 1994.

By Brian Homewood
© Reuters Limited

Brazil, needing a win to guarantee a top four place and avoid a play-off with Australia, settled their nerves when striker Luizao scored twice in the first 20 minutes. Rivaldo added the third, his eighth of the competition, in the 35th minute.

Expanding its presence on the internet, FIFA has created the first of a future series of special interest channels. As of 28 April, in form of a separate site, the FIFA Media Channel will provide service information to media of all categories on the 2002 FIFA World Cup" and beyond.

Note for media accredited for the 2002 FIFA World Cup":
In order to access the site at the login type in ID and password in accordance with the information given in the confirmation letter you have received.

As the world changes, more and more organisations use the Internet as a major medium of communication and an important method of promotion. The use of the Internet to promote and communicate sport in particular is growing all the time, and in many ways sport is becoming a key driver for the acceptance of new sites and services.

FIFAworldcup.com, the official Website of the 2002 FIFA World Cup" has purchased the rights to be the Exclusive Global FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan" Video Highlights Provider over the Internet. The agreement was reached today between FIFA, KirchSport AG and Yahoo!

Very important notice to all accredited media of the 2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan" regarding accreditation.

Regulations regarding access control for preparation camp sites of the final tournament has been clarified at the official team workshop held in Tokyo in February and has been officially approved by the FIFA World Cup Organising Committee thereafter.

In late March, FIFA’s six dozen World Cup referees and assistant referees have completed a comprehensive seminar in Seoul in preparation for the 64-match tournament starting in less than ten weeks’ time.

The 36 referees and 36 assistants, from all six continental confederations, not only underwent the customary fitness tests but also participated in a series of talks and discussions designed to tune them up for the pressures of the World Cup.