Drop in rankings not to hit seeding

Soccer World Cup draw:Ireland look set to slip several places in the Fifa world ranking list to be confirmed on Friday after a poor conclusion to the team's European Championship campaign but not quite enough to cost them their third-place seeding in next Sunday's draw for the qualifying stages of the next World Cup.

A spokesman for Uefa yesterday confirmed the world ranking list will, subject to being ratified by the World Cup organising committee on Saturday, be used for the determination of European seedings in the following day's draw. With Fifa having already given their blessing to the adoption of this new system by Uefa, approval is a formality.

The switch from a system based on the average number of points gained during qualifying matches during the previous two campaigns will not make any practical difference to the Irish who would have been third seeds whichever method was employed. Had Uefa made the change two years ago, however, and made the draw for the current European Championship groups based on the ranking list for November 2005 then Ireland would have been second rather than fourth seeds and could not have ended up in a group with both the Czechs and Germans.

As it is, when the proposal was made before last month's qualifers, the French looked like being the major beneficiaries as their place among the top seeds looked far from assured at that stage under the system traditionally employed. Since then their form has improved and they currently lie ninth - just good enough for a place in Pot A under the old rules. Their world ranking, however, places them firmly among the top tier of nations.

For the FAI there will be some relief that things did not slip badly enough over the last couple of months to land the national team back among the fourth seeds. The team took just four points from their last five qualifying games, substantially less than any of the teams immediately behind them in the world ranking table.

The Republic are currently 21st on the Fifa list of Uefa members but are set to fall anything up to four places this week. If the European end of the World Cup qualifiers had been organised on the same basis as the Euro 2008 preliminary tournament with the teams again divided into seven groups, then such a drop would indeed have meant being drawn with three higher ranked nations once again.

Instead, the number of groups will increase to nine with the winners progressing automatically and eight of the runners-up going on to face each other in play-off matches. That means that the sides ranked 19th to 27th in Europe will be third seeds and so the Irish will, on the face of it at least, be better off than last time around.

The net effect, however, will be rather similar with the team either having to displace two higher sides to win the group or finish second in the group and then do what we have never done before and beat a European side in the play-offs.

Chief executive John Delaney and president David Blood will represent the FAI at Sunday's draw. It had originally been intended Steve Staunton would attend the ceremony.

The man in charge of team affairs would normally be expected to have a view on and a say in the order in which games are played. That is decided at a separate meeting of the associations in each group which is usually within a month or so after the draw is made and Shay Given feels the FAI will aim to have Staunton's successor appointed by then.

"It will probably be sooner rather than later. And then the friendlies start in February and the new guy will want his team in place with his tactics and formations also in, building up to the qualification games. I know the FAI realises that and they want to get him in as soon as possible."

The Republic's elevation from fourth to third seeds, meanwhile, is completely overshadowed by the achievement of Northern Ireland who are now virtually certain to also be in Pot C having been drawn sixth of seven nations for the present qualifying campaign.

As things stand, Bulgaria, Israel, Northern Ireland and even Finland all have the strong potential to overhaul Ireland in the ranking list thanks to wins secured at the weekend. All four will play again on Wednesday with the latter two still pursuing outside chances of qualification.