England have been given a pre-tournament boost ahead of the summer’s World Cup with the news that they are among the eight top seeds for the competition
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Sven Goran Eriksson’s side will be top seeds for the tournament, along with tournament hosts Germany, current World Cup holders Brazil, Italy, France, Argentina, Spain and Mexico.
Talking to the FA website immediately after hearing the news, England manager Sven Goran Eriksson said, "It’s excellent news.
"I think it’s right too. We are one of the teams that have the potential to do very well in Germany and we have some of the best players in the world.
"Finishing top of our qualification group with the second best record in the whole of Europe was a big achievement and I’m sure that has played a part in this decision."
The significance of England’s seeding will be seen when the draw takes place in Leipzig on Friday evening. None of the top seeded teams mentioned above can be drawn against each other in the group stages of the tournament.
The news of the seedings will have been a disappointment to Holland, Portugal and Czech Republic, and the top-seeded teams will be hoping to avoid this trio when the groups are drawn.
HOW THE DRAW WILL WORK
- The eight seeded teams (Pot One) will be drawn, one in each of the eight groups A-F. As hosts, Germany have been allocated Group A and as holders, Brazil have been allocated Group F.
- The eight unseeded European teams (Pot Three) will be drawn into the eight groups.
- Once the European teams from Pot Three have been drawn, the Special Pot, containing the lowest-ranked European team, Serbia & Montenegro, will be allocated one of the three groups containing Brazil, Argentina and Mexico. This is to ensure that no group contains more than two European teams.
- The remaining sides from Oceania, Africa and South America (Pot Two), will be drawn, one team going into each of the eight groups.
- The Asian teams and the CONCACAF qualifiers (Pot Four) will be drawn into seven of the eight groups. The only group not to contain a team from Pot Four will be the group containing Serbia & Montenegro.
