Tournament details | |
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Dates | 26 March 1980 – 10 January 1982 |
Teams | 109 (from 6 confederations) |
Tournament statistics | |
Matches played | 306 |
Goals scored | 797 (2.6 per match) |
Top scorer(s) | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() (9 goals each) |
A total of 109 teams entered the 1982 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds, which began with the preliminary qualification draw on 14 October 1979 at Zürich, competing for a total of 24 spots in the final tournament, an increase from 16 in the previous World Cups. Spain, as the hosts, and Argentina, as the defending champions, qualified automatically, leaving 22 spots open for competition.
The 24 spots available in the 1982 World Cup would be distributed among the continental zones as follows:
A total of 103 teams played at least one qualifying match. A total of 306 qualifying matches were played, and 797 goals were scored (an average of 2.60 per match).
The following 24 teams qualified for the 1982 FIFA World Cup:
Team | Method of qualification |
Date of qualification |
Finals appearance |
Last appearance |
Consecutive finals appearances |
Previous best performance |
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Host | 6 July 1966 | 6th | 1978 | 2 | Fourth place (1950) |
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1978 FIFA World Cup Winners | 25 June 1978 | 8th | 1978 | 3 | Winners (1978) |
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CONMEBOL Group 1 Winners | 22 March 1981 | 12th | 1978 | 12 | Winners (1958, 1962, 1970) |
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CONMEBOL Group 3 Winners | 14 June 1981 | 6th | 1974 | 1 | Third place (1962) |
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CONMEBOL Group 2 Winners | 6 September 1981 | 4th | 1978 | 2 | Quarter-finals (1970), Second round (1978) |
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UEFA Group 2 Winners | 9 September 1981 | 6th | 1970 | 1 | First round (1930, 1934, 1938, 1954, 1970) |
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UEFA Group 7 Winners | 10 October 1981 | 4th | 1978 | 3 | Third place (1974) |
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UEFA Group 6 Winners | 14 October 1981 | 5th | 1978 | 3 | First round (1954, 1958, 1974, 1978) |
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UEFA Group 1 Winners | 14 October 1981 | 10th | 1978 | 8 | Winners (1954, 1974) |
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CAF Final round Winners | 30 October 1981 | 1st | — | 1 | — |
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UEFA Group 4 Winners | 31 October 1981 | 8th | 1978 | 2 | Runners-up (1938, 1954) |
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UEFA Group 5 Runners-up | 14 November 1981 | 10th | 1978 | 6 | Winners (1934, 1938) |
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1981 CONCACAF Championship Champions | 16 November 1981 | 1st | — | 1 | — |
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UEFA Group 4 Runners-up | 18 November 1981 | 7th | 1970 | 1 | Winners (1966) |
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UEFA Group 6 Runners-up | 18 November 1981 | 2nd | 1958 | 1 | Quarter-finals (1958) |
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UEFA Group 3 Winners | 18 November 1981 | 5th | 1970 | 1 | Fourth place (1966) |
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UEFA Group 5 Winners | 21 November 1981 | 7th | 1974 | 1 | Fourth place (1930, 1962) |
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UEFA Group 1 Runners-up | 22 November 1981 | 5th | 1978 | 2 | Third place (1954) |
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1981 CONCACAF Championship Runners-up | 22 November 1981 | 2nd | 1970 | 1 | First round (1970) |
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CAF Final round Winners | 29 November 1981 | 1st | — | 1 | — |
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UEFA Group 3 Runners-up | 29 November 1981 | 7th | 1970 | 1 | Runners-up (1934, 1962) |
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UEFA Group 2 Runners-up | 5 December 1981 | 8th | 1978 | 2 | Third place (1958) |
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AFC and OFC Final round Winners | 14 December 1981 | 1st | — | 1 | — |
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AFC and OFC Final round play-off Winners | 10 January 1982 | 1st | — | 1 | — |