The

2010 FIFA World Cup qualification Qualifying for the 2010 FIFA World Cup was a series of tournaments organised by the six FIFA confederations. Each confederation — the AFC (Asia), CAF (Africa), CONCACAF (North, Central America and Caribbean), CONMEBOL (South America), OFC (Oc ...

for the

Oceania Football Confederation The Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) is one of the six continental confederations of international association football. The OFC has 13 members, 11 of which are full members and two which are associate members not affiliated with FIFA. It ...

(OFC) selected

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...

to compete in a two-legged home-and-away playoff against

Bahrain Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and a ...

, the fifth-place team from the

Asian Football Confederation The Asian Football Confederation is the governing body of association football, beach soccer, and futsal in some countries/territories in Asia and Oceania. It has 47 member countries most of which are located in Asia. Australia, formerly ...

(AFC) for a spot in the

2010 FIFA World Cup , image = 2010 FIFA World Cup.svg , size = 200px , caption = ''Ke Nako. (Tswana and Sotho for "It's time") Celebrate Africa's Humanity'It's time. Celebrate Africa's Humanity'' (English)''Dis tyd. Vier Afrika se mensd ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...

. (Oceania is the only confederation that does not have an automatic place in the finals.) Its final round was the 2008 OFC Nations Cup. Consequently, New Zealand is also considered the

OFC Nations Cup The OFC Nations Cup is an international association football tournament held among the OFC member nations. It was held every two years from 1996 to 2004; before 1996 there were two other tournaments held at irregular intervals, under the nam ...

champion, and represented the OFC in the

2009 FIFA Confederations Cup The 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup was the eighth Confederations Cup, and was held in South Africa from 14 June to 28 June 2009, as a prelude to the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The draw was held on 22 November 2008 at the Sandton Convention Centre in Jo ...

. This was the first OFC World Cup qualifying campaign since

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

's move from the OFC to the AFC.

Format

The first phase began at the

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple Inc., Apple's first iPhone (1st generation), iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakis ...

Pacific Games The Pacific Games (French: Jeux du Pacifique), is a continental multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from Oceania. The inaugural Games took place in 1963 in Suva, Fiji, and most recently in 2019 in Apia, Samoa. The Games wer ...

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands ( Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands ( Manono and Apolima); ...

, with the football tournament doubling as an OFC World Cup qualifying competition. The gold, silver, and bronze medallists (New Caledonia, Fiji, and Vanuatu, respectively) advanced to the second phase. The three medallists joined seeded side

in a home-and-away round-robin tournament on FIFA match dates in 2007 and 2008, also acting as the 2008 OFC Nations Cup. There were some confusion as to how the final qualifier for the playoff against an AFC nation would be selected. The FIFA website initially indicated that the top two sides from the round robin would advance to a play-off which would determine the qualifier, but the OFC articles did not include this round (with the round-robin winner advancing automatically). Later FIFA articles confirmed that the round-robin winner would advance automatically.FIFA.com - Double delight for New Zealand
/ref>

First round

The

2007 South Pacific Games The 2007 South Pacific Games were held in Apia, Samoa, from 25 August to 8 September 2007. The Games were the thirteenth to be held since the inception of the South Pacific Games in 1963, and included traditional multi-sport event disciplines, s ...

held the first round. The draw was held on 12 June 2007 in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about I ...

Tuvalu Tuvalu ( or ; formerly known as the Ellice Islands) is an island country and microstate in the Polynesian subregion of Oceania in the Pacific Ocean. Its islands are situated about midway between Hawaii and Australia. They lie east-northea ...

were not members of

FIFA FIFA (; stands for ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' (French), meaning International Association Football Federation ) is the international governing body of association football, beach football and futsal. It was found ...

and so would have been unable to qualify for the World Cup had they proceeded to the OFC Nations Cup stage. It was not even clear whether Tuvalu would be eligible to advance that far had they finished in a medal position, as the OFC press release for the second stage draw stated that "nine eligible member associations battle it out for the gold, silver and bronze medals that will hand them a berth in a Stage Two round robin home and away playoff with New Zealand" - implying one nation (Tuvalu) would not be eligible. This question was rendered moot, however, as Tuvalu finished last in their table.

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...

, having initially entered the 2010 World Cup and indicated their intention to enter the South Pacific Games, were involved in a dispute with their sporting authorities and failed to meet the official accreditation deadline for the South Pacific Games. This meant they were effectively disqualified from the World Cup.

Group stage

Group A

Group B

Knockout stage

The three medalists, New Caledonia, Fiji, and Vanuatu, advanced to the 2008 OFC Nations Cup (together with automatic qualifier

Second round

New Zealand qualified for the

play-off The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...

against the AFC playoff winner, as well as the

Inter-confederation play-offs

The Oceania champion (

) played the AFC playoff winner,

, in a two-legged play-off; New Zealand beat Bahrain to qualify for the

2010 World Cup , image = 2010 FIFA World Cup.svg , size = 200px , caption = ''Ke Nako. (Tswana and Sotho for "It's time") Celebrate Africa's Humanity'It's time. Celebrate Africa's Humanity'' (English)''Dis tyd. Vier Afrika se mensd ...

. The draw for the order in which the two matches would be played was held on 2 June 2009 during the FIFA Congress in

Nassau Nassau may refer to: Places Bahamas *Nassau, Bahamas, capital city of the Bahamas, on the island of New Providence Canada *Nassau District, renamed Home District, regional division in Upper Canada from 1788 to 1792 *Nassau Street (Winnipeg), ...

the Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to 88% of the a ...

.Intercontinental play-off dates confirmed

Qualified teams

The following team from OFC qualified for the final tournament. :

¹ Bold indicates champions for that year. ''Italic'' indicates hosts for that year.

Goalscorers

There were 150 goals scored over 38 games (including the intercontinental play-off), for an average of 3.95 goals per game. ;12 goals * Osea Vakatalesau ;9 goals *

Seule Soromon Seule Soromon (born 14 August 1984) is an association football Forward (association football), striker from Vanuatu who currently plays for Wairarapa United in the Central Premier League. He hails from Mele (disambiguation), Mele, which is loca ...

;8 goals *

Shane Smeltz Shane Edward Smeltz (born 29 September 1981) is a New Zealand Australian footballer. He plays as a striker for Guiseley AFC in the Northern Premier League, the 7th tier of English football. Smeltz had spent much of his early career playing in ...

;7 goals *

Commins Menapi Commins Menapi (18 September 1977 – 18 November 2017) was a Solomon Islands striker, who was last the manager of Western United. He guided them to their first and only Telekom S league title season 2014/2015. Club career He played for Young ...

;6 goals *

Roy Krishna Roy Krishna (born 30 August 1987) is a Fijian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Indian Super League club Bengaluru FC and the Fiji national team. Club career Early career Krishna joined the New Zealand Football Championship ...

* François Sakama ;5 goals * Michel Hmaé * Iamel Kabeu * Etienne Mermer ;4 goals *

Pierre Wajoka Pierre Wajoka (born 19 December 1978) is a retired New Caledonian footballer who played as a midfielder He played one year for AS Lössi, the club representing his custom area. In 2011, he moved to Gaïtcha FCN. He is known for scoring the fir ...

* Henry Fa'arodo * Benjamin Totori ;3 goals * Pita Baleitoga *

Pita Rabo Pita Biri Rabo (born 30 July 1977), is a Fijian footballer who plays as a forward for Fijian National Football League side Suva. As well as being club captain, Rabo is also a coach for the Suva-based club. Club career Rabo joined Palmerston ...

* David Mulligan ;2 goals * Teariki Mateariki *

Maciu Dunadamu Maciu Samaidrawa Dunadamu (born 14 June 1986) is a Fijian footballer, who currently plays for Savusavu in the Fiji Senior League. Career Dunadamu started his soccer career in the Labasa Sangam Primary School. After graduating, he left Labasa ...

* Malakai Kainihewe *

Malakai Tiwa Malakai Tiwa (born 3 October 1986) in Fiji is a association football, footballer who plays as a midfielder. He has previously played for PRK Hekari United, Hekari United. He currently plays for Ba F.C., Ba in the National Football League (Fiji) ...

Taniela Waqa Taniela Evo Waqa (born June 22, 1983) is a Fijian association football defender playing for Fiji national football team The Fiji national football team is Fiji's national men's team and is controlled by the governing body of foot ...

* Chris Cahill *

Desmond Fa'aiuaso Desmond Fa'aiuaso (born 24 February 1984) is a Football striker from Samoa who currently plays for Vailima Kiwi. He currently has both the most caps and the most goals for his home country, Samoa. Career Club Fa'aiuaso had his first stint in ...

* Penitito Tumua * Godwin Bebeu * Alick Maemae * Stanley Waita * Pio Palu *

Richard Iwai Richard Iwai (born 15 March 1979, Vanuatu) is a former Vanuatuan international footballer who played most of his career for Tafea as a forward. He's currently assistant coach of Ifira Black Bird and the head coach of the Vanuatu under-23 te ...

* Jean Nako Naprapol * Moise Poida ;1 goal * Ramin Ott * Thomas Le Mouton * Kunda Tom * Josaia Bukalidi *

Peni Finau Peni Finau (born 5 August 1981), originally known as Peni Lesubulamailepanoni, is a Fiji footballer defender currently playing for Fijian football club Ba F.C. International career Finau made his debut for Fiji at the South Pacific Games 2003 ...

* Salesh Kumar *

Valerio Nawatu Valerio Nawatu (born 24 July 1984) is a Fiji national football team, Fiji international Association football, footballer who is currently registered with Papakura City Football Club. He is currently the leading goal scorer in the Lotto NRFL Div 2 c ...

* Patrick Diaiké *

Ramon Djamali Ramon Djamali (born 12 June 1975) is a footballer who currently plays for AS Mont-Dore in the New Caledonian football league. He has been playing as a striker. He has also played in the Tahitian league for AS Manu Ura. He made his debut for ...

* Ramon Gjamaci * José Hmaé * Mael Kaudre *

Marius Mapou Marius Mapou (born 22 June 1980) is an international footballer for New Caledonia. He played in the 2008 OFC Nations Cup The OFC Nations Cup is an international association football tournament held among the OFC member nations. It was he ...

* Yohann Mercier *

Poulidor Toto Raymond Poulidor (; 15 April 1936 – 13 November 2019), nicknamed "Pou-Pou" (), was a French professional racing cyclist, who rode for his entire career. His distinguished career coincided with two other outstanding riders – Jacques Anquet ...

Jeremy Christie Jeremy John Christie (born 22 May 1983) is a New Zealand international footballer who most recently played for FC Tampa Bay in the North American Soccer League. Christie specialises in central midfield and as a defender. Christie was part ...

* Rory Fallon *

Ben Sigmund Benjamin Robert Sigmund (born 3 February 1981) is a New Zealand former international footballer. He represented New Zealand at under-17, under-20 and senior level. Club career Born in Blenheim, Sigmund spent his early career with Football Kin ...

* Ivan Vicelich * Damien Fonoti *

Junior Michael Junior Michael is a former association footballer from Samoa, who played as a forward during his career. Michael played for 5 clubs as well as the Samoa national football team. Club career Titavi FC Michael began his career with the club fro ...

Lionel Taylor Lionel Thomas Taylor (born August 15, 1935) is a former American football wide receiver who led the American Football League (AFL) in receptions for five of the first six years of the league's existence. College football Taylor attended New ...

* Judd Molea * Samson Takayama * Temarii Tinorua *

Axel Williams Axel Williams (born 3 December 1983 in Pirae) is a Tahitian footballer currently playing for AS Tefana. Career Club Williams started his professional career 2005 with AS Pirae. After five years left Piraé and joined to AS Tefana, who played ...

* Unaloto Feao * Lafeale Moala * Malakai Savieti * Kaisani Uhatahi * Andrew Chichirua * Derek Malas * Victor Maleb * Tom Tomake ;1 own goal * Stephen Willis (for

)

References

Oceania zone
at FIFA.com
OFC - OFC 2010 FIFA World Cup route via AsiaOFC - Stage two World Cup draw announcedOFC - 2010 Qualification Format
{{FIFA World Cup 2010 Qualifiers OFC FIFA World Cup qualification (OFC) qual qual