View source for 1990 FIFA World Cup qualification

{{Cleanup rewrite|date=October 2017|reason=detail the page much like what was done for 1998, 2002, and 2006.}}
{{Infobox international football competition
| tourney_name   = 1990 FIFA World Cup Qualification
| year           = 
| alt            =
| caption        =
| dates          = 
| num_teams      = 116
| confederations = 6
| matches        = 314
| goals          = 735
| attendance     = 
| top_scorer     = {{flagicon|BEL}} [[Marc Van Der Linden]]<br />{{flagicon|KOR}} [[Hwang Sun-hong]]<br />(7 goals each)
| prevseason     = [[1986 FIFA World Cup qualification|1986]]
| nextseason     = [[1994 FIFA World Cup qualification|1994]]
}}
The '''1990 FIFA World Cup qualification''' was a series of tournaments organised by the six [[FIFA]] [[FIFA#Structure|confederations]]. The [[1990 FIFA World Cup]] featured 24 teams with one place reserved for the host nation, [[Italy national football team|Italy]], and one place for the defending champions, [[Argentina national football team|Argentina]]. The remaining 22 places were determined by a qualification process, in which 116 teams, from the six [[FIFA]] confederations, competed. Most of the successful teams were determined within these confederations, with a limited number of inter-confederation play-offs occurring at the end of the process.

The first qualification match was played on 17 April 1988 and qualification concluded on 19 November 1989. A total of 735 goals were scored in the 314 qualifying matches (an average of 2.34 per match).

==Entrants==
At the close of entries on 30 September 1987, a total of 116 football associations had entered the 1990 World Cup. This entry figure was five lower than those who originally entered the previous tournament, a then-World Cup record of 121 entries.

Three entries were rejected by FIFA: [[Belize national football team|Belize]], [[Mauritius national football team|Mauritius]] and [[Mozambique national football team|Mozambique]] due to their outstanding financial debts, taking the number of accepted teams down to 113. With both the hosts and holders qualifying automatically for the finals, 111 nations were therefore scheduled to compete in the qualifying competitions. [[Gabon national football team|Gabon]], [[Oman national football team|Oman]] and [[Pakistan national football team|Pakistan]] were making their first appearance in the World Cup.

Seven teams withdrew during the qualifying process without playing a match: [[Bahrain national football team|Bahrain]], [[India national football team|India]], [[Lesotho national football team|Lesotho]], [[Maldives national football team|Maldives]], [[Rwanda national football team|Rwanda]], [[South Yemen national football team|South Yemen]] and [[Togo national football team|Togo]]. [[Mexico national football team|Mexico]] were disqualified from the CONCACAF qualifying tournament before playing a game for [[Cachirules|fielding overage players]] in the qualifying stages for the [[Football at the 1988 Summer Olympics|1988 Olympic Games]]. [[Libya national football team|Libya]] withdrew during the CAF group stage, but had already (successfully) played in the first round. Therefore, the total number of teams playing at least one fixture during the 1990 World Cup competition was 105 (103 during qualifying).

==Qualified teams==
[[File:1990 world cup qualification.png|thumb|700x700px|Final qualification status {{legend|#000cff|Country qualified for World Cup}} {{legend|#ffb400|Country failed to qualify}} {{legend|#000000|Country did not enter World Cup}} {{legend|#ababab|Country not a FIFA member}}]]<!---To allow 'Previous best appearance' to be sorted, the following nominal values have been ascribed to performances in the tournament;
Winners=1, Runners-up=2, Third place=3, Fourth place=4, Quarter-finals=5, Round of 16=6, Group stage=7, First appearance=8. To sort, please input the following before the text: 'data-sort-value="x"|'.-->

<ref name=":12">{{Cite web|url=http://es.fifa.com/mm/document/fifafacts/mcwc/fifaworldcuppreliminaryhistory_byyear__13876.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717045303/http://es.fifa.com/mm/document/fifafacts/mcwc/fifaworldcuppreliminaryhistory_byyear__13876.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=17 July 2011|title=History of the FIFA World Cup Preliminary Competition (by year)|date=27 July 2007|website=FIFA.com|access-date=13 October 2017}}</ref>

The following 24 teams qualified for the [[1990 FIFA World Cup]]:

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align: left;"
!Team
!Method of
qualification
!Date of
qualification
!Finals
appearance
!Streak
!Previous best
performance
|-
|{{fb|ARG}} || {{sort|*Champions|Defending champions}} || 29 June 1986 || {{Sort|10|10th}}||{{sort|051986|5}} || {{Sort|02|'''Winners''' ([[1978 FIFA World Cup|1978]], [[1986 FIFA World Cup|1986]])}}
|-
|{{fb|AUT}} || {{sort|UEFA 2|[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 3|UEFA group 3]] runners-up}} || 15 November 1989 || {{Sort|06|6th}}||{{sort|011982|1}} <small>(last: [[1982 FIFA World Cup|1982]])</small>|| {{Sort|06|Third place ([[1954 FIFA World Cup|1954]])}}
|-
|{{fb|BEL}} || {{sort|UEFA 1|[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 7|UEFA group 7]] winners}} || 25 October 1989 || {{Sort|08|8th}} || {{sort|031986|3}}|| {{Sort|08|Fourth place ([[1986 FIFA World Cup|1986]])}}
|-
|{{fb|BRA|1968}} || {{sort|CONMEBOL 1|[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification (CONMEBOL)#Group 3|CONMEBOL group 3]] winners}} || 10 September 1989 ||{{Sort|14|14th}} || {{sort|141986|14}} || {{Sort|01|'''Winners''' ([[1958 FIFA World Cup|1958]], [[1962 FIFA World Cup|1962]], [[1970 FIFA World Cup|1970]])}}
|-
|{{fb|CMR}} || {{sort|CAF|[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification (CAF)#Final round|CAF final round]] winners}} || 19 November 1989 || {{Sort|02|2nd}} || {{sort|011982|1}} <small>(last: [[1982 FIFA World Cup|1982]])</small> || {{Sort|12|Group stage ([[1982 FIFA World Cup|1982]])}}
|-
|{{fb|COL}} || {{sort|CONMEBOL 3|[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification#Intercontinental Play-off|CONMEBOL v OFC play-off]] winners}} || 30 October 1989 || {{Sort|02|2nd}} || {{sort|011962|1}} <small>(last: [[1962 FIFA World Cup|1962]])</small> || {{Sort|12|Group stage ([[1962 FIFA World Cup|1962]])}}
|-
|{{fb|CRC}} || {{sort|CONCACAF 1|[[1989 CONCACAF Championship|CONCACAF Championship]] winners}} || 16 July 1989 || {{Sort|01|1st}} || {{sort|01|1}} || —
|-
|{{fb|TCH}} || {{sort|UEFA|[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 7|UEFA group 7]] runners-up}} || 15 November 1989 || {{Sort|08|8th}} || {{sort|011982|1}} <small>(last: [[1982 FIFA World Cup|1982]])</small> || {{Sort|04|Runners-up ([[1934 FIFA World Cup|1934]], [[1962 FIFA World Cup|1962]])}}
|-
|{{fb|EGY}} || {{sort|CAF|[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification (CAF)#Final round|CAF final round]] winners}} || 17 November 1989|| {{Sort|02|2nd}} || {{sort|011934|1}} <small>(last: [[1934 FIFA World Cup|1934]])</small> || {{Sort|13|First round ([[1934 FIFA World Cup|1934]])}}
|-
|{{fb|ENG}} || {{sort|UEFA 2|[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 2|UEFA group 2]] runners-up}} || 15 November 1989 || {{Sort|09|9th}} || {{sort|031986|3}} || {{Sort|03|'''Winners''' ([[1966 FIFA World Cup|1966]])}}
|-
|{{fb|ITA}} || {{sort|*Host|Hosts}} || 19 May 1984 || {{Sort|12|12th}} || {{sort|081986|8}} || {{Sort|01|'''Winners''' ([[1934 FIFA World Cup|1934]], [[1938 FIFA World Cup|1938]], [[1982 FIFA World Cup|1982]])}}
|-
|{{fb|KOR|1984}} || {{sort|AFC 1|[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC)#Final round|AFC final round]] winners}} || 25 October 1989 || {{Sort|03|3rd}} || {{sort|021986|2}} || {{Sort|11|Group stage ([[1954 FIFA World Cup|1954]], [[1986 FIFA World Cup|1986]])}}
|-
|{{fb|NED}} || {{sort|UEFA 1|[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 4|UEFA group 4]] winners}} || 15 November 1989 || {{Sort|05|5th}} || {{sort|011978|1}} <small>(last: [[1978 FIFA World Cup|1978]])</small> || {{Sort|04|Runners-up ([[1974 FIFA World Cup|1974]], [[1978 FIFA World Cup|1978]])}}
|-
|{{fb|IRL}} || {{sort|UEFA 2|[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 6|UEFA group 6]] runners-up}} || 15 November 1989 || {{Sort|01|1st}} || {{sort|01|1}} || –
|-
|{{fb|ROU}} || {{sort|UEFA 1|[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 1|UEFA group 1]] winners}} || 15 November 1989 || {{Sort|05|5th}} || {{sort|011970|1}} <small>(last: [[1970 FIFA World Cup|1970]])</small> || {{Sort|10|Group stage ([[1930 FIFA World Cup|1930]], [[1934 FIFA World Cup|1934]], [[1938 FIFA World Cup|1938]], [[1970 FIFA World Cup|1970]])}}
|-
|{{fb|SCO}} || {{sort|UEFA 2|[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 5|UEFA group 5]] runners-up}} || 15 November 1989 || {{Sort|07|7th}} || {{sort|051986|5}} || {{Sort|09|Group stage ([[1954 FIFA World Cup|1954]], [[1958 FIFA World Cup|1958]], [[1974 FIFA World Cup|1974]], [[1978 FIFA World Cup|1978]], [[1982 FIFA World Cup|1982]], [[1986 FIFA World Cup|1986]])}}
|-
|{{fb|ESP}} || {{sort|UEFA 1|[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 6|UEFA group 6]] winners}} || 11 October 1989 || {{Sort|08|8th}} || {{sort|041986|4}} || {{Sort|08|Fourth place ([[1950 FIFA World Cup|1950]])}}
|-
|{{fb|SWE}} || {{sort|UEFA 1|[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 2|UEFA group 2]] winners}} || 11 October 1989 || {{Sort|08|8th}} || {{sort|011978|1}} <small>(last: [[1978 FIFA World Cup|1978]])</small> || {{Sort|05|Runners-up ([[1958 FIFA World Cup|1958]])}}
|-
|{{fb|UAE}} || {{sort|AFC 2|[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC)#Final round|AFC final round]] runners-up}} || 28 October 1989 || {{Sort|01|1st}} || {{sort|01|1}} || —
|-
|{{fb|USA}} || {{sort|CONCACAF 2|[[1989 CONCACAF Championship|CONCACAF Championship]] runners-up}} || 19 November 1989 || {{Sort|04|4th}} || {{sort|011950|1}} <small>(last: [[1950 FIFA World Cup|1950]])</small> || {{Sort|06|Third place ([[1930 FIFA World Cup|1930]])}}
|-
|{{fb|URU}} || {{sort|CONMEBOL 2|[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification (CONMEBOL)#Group 1|CONMEBOL group 2]] winners}} || 24 September 1989 || {{Sort|09|9th}} || {{sort|021986|2}} || {{Sort|02|'''Winners''' ([[1930 FIFA World Cup|1930]], [[1950 FIFA World Cup|1950]])}}
|-
|{{fb|URS}} || {{sort|UEFA 1|[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 3|UEFA group 3]] winners}} || 15 November 1989 || {{Sort|07|7th}} || {{sort|031986|3}} || {{Sort|08|Fourth place ([[1966 FIFA World Cup|1966]])}}
|-
|{{fb|FRG}} || {{sort|UEFA 2|[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 4|UEFA group 4]] runners-up}} || 15 November 1989 || {{Sort|12|12th}} || {{sort|101986|10}} || {{Sort|02|'''Winners''' ([[1954 FIFA World Cup|1954]], [[1974 FIFA World Cup|1974]])}}
|-
|{{fb|YUG}} || {{sort|UEFA 1|[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 5|UEFA group 5]] winners}} || 11 October 1989 || {{Sort|08|8th}} || {{sort|011982|1}} <small>(last: [[1982 FIFA World Cup|1982]])</small> || {{Sort|07|Fourth place ([[1930 FIFA World Cup|1930]], [[1962 FIFA World Cup|1962]])}}
|-
|}

==Confederation qualification==

===AFC===
{{main|1990 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC)}}
Qualification for AFC teams consisted of two rounds. Round one saw the teams divided into 6 groups, each team playing the others in their group twice. The winner of each group then went into a final group where they played each other once.

The qualification process began with 25 national teams vying for two spots. Korea Republic and United Arab Emirates qualified.

{| class="wikitable"
!Legend
|- bgcolor="#ccffcc"
|Countries that directly qualified for the 1990 World Cup
|}

==== Final positions (final round) ====
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
! width="30" |Rank
! width="165" style="text-align:left" |Team
! width="20" |Pld
! width="20" |Pts
|- bgcolor="#ccffcc"
|'''1'''
| align="left" |{{fb|KOR|1984}}
|5
|'''8'''
|- bgcolor="#ccffcc"
|'''2'''
| align="left" |{{fb|UAE}}
|5
|'''6'''
|-
|'''3'''
| align="left" |{{fb|QAT}}
|5
|'''5'''
|-
|'''4'''
| align="left" |{{fb|CHN}}
|5
|'''4'''
|-
|'''5'''
| align="left" |{{fb|KSA}}
|5
|'''4'''
|-
|'''6'''
| align="left" |{{fb|PRK}}
|5
|'''3'''
|}

===CAF===
{{main|1990 FIFA World Cup qualification (CAF)}}

Rwanda and Togo both withdrew. The remaining teams played playoff games on a home and away basis. The Winners advance to the group stage. Group stage, the 16 teams are divided into 4 groups of 4 teams. The winners advance to the final round. Final round, the 4 teams play playoff games on a home and away basis, the winners would qualify.

:'''Egypt''' and '''Cameroon''' qualified.

===CONCACAF===
{{main|1989 CONCACAF Championship}}
Qualification took place over three rounds, with the first two rounds being qualification for the CONCACAF Championship. In the first round, ten teams played in a two leg match with the five winners qualifying for the second round where they joined Canada, Honduras, El Salvador, United States and Mexico. Before the games, Mexico was disqualified for fielding over-age players at the [[1988 CONCACAF U-20 Tournament]] which allowed Costa Rica a walkover.<ref>{{cite web|title=Mexico Given Ban In Soccer|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/07/01/sports/mexico-given-ban-in-soccer.html|work=The New York Times|date=1 July 1988|access-date=14 June 2013|archive-date=2 July 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180702210208/https://www.nytimes.com/1988/07/01/sports/mexico-given-ban-in-soccer.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The remaining eight teams played playoff games against each other with the winners advancing to the final round.

In the final round, the five teams would played each other on a home and away basis with the top two teams qualifying for the World Cup.

{| class="wikitable"
!Legend
|- bgcolor="#ccffcc"
|Countries that directly qualified for the 1990 World Cup
|}

==== Final positions (final round) ====
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
! width="30" |Rank
! width="165" style="text-align:left" |Team
! width="20" |{{tooltip|Pld|Matches played}}
! width="20" |{{tooltip|Pts|Points}}
|- bgcolor="#ccffcc"
|'''1'''
| style="text-align:left" |{{fb|CRC}}
|8
|'''11'''
|- bgcolor="#ccffcc"
|'''2'''
| style="text-align:left" |{{fb|USA}}
|8
|'''11'''
|-
|'''3'''
| style="text-align:left" |{{fb|TRI}}
|8
|'''9'''
|-
|'''4'''
| style="text-align:left" |{{fb|GUA}}
|8
|'''3'''
|-
|'''5'''
| style="text-align:left" |{{fb|SLV}}
|8
|'''2'''
|}

===CONMEBOL===
{{main|1990 FIFA World Cup qualification (CONMEBOL)}}

The 9 teams are divided into 3 groups of 3 teams

:Group 1 – '''Uruguay''' qualified.
:Group 2 – '''Colombia''' advanced to the [[#Intercontinental Play-off|Intercontinental Play-off]].
:Group 3 – '''Brazil''' qualified.

===OFC===
{{main|1990 FIFA World Cup qualification (OFC)}}
Qualification for OFC teams consisted of two rounds. Four teams entered initially as they played in two home-and-away matches with the winners qualifying for the second round. They would be joined by [[Israel national football team|Israel]] who had the bye in the first round with the three teams playing each other twice and the winner advancing to the intercontinental play-off against a CONMEBOL member. Israel won the group and advanced

{| class="wikitable"
!Legend
|- bgcolor="#ccffcc"
|Countries that advanced to the [[1994 FIFA World Cup qualification (OFC–CONMEBOL play-off)|OFC–CONMEBOL play-off]]
|}

{{:1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – OFC second round|title=[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – OFC second round|Second round]]|only_pld_pts=y|show_matches=n|show_positions=n}}

===UEFA===
{{main|1990 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA)}}
The 32 teams are divided into 7 groups, 4 groups of 5 teams and 3 groups of 4 teams each.

{| class="wikitable"
!Legend
|- bgcolor="#ccffcc"
|Countries that directly qualified for the 1990 World Cup
|}

==== Final positions (group stage) ====
{{col-begin|width=auto}}
{{col-break}}
{{:1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 1|title=[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 1|Group 1]]|only_pld_pts=y|show_matches=n|show_positions=n}}
{{col-break|gap=1em}}
{{:1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 2|title=[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 2|Group 2]]|only_pld_pts=y|show_matches=n|show_positions=n}}
{{col-break|gap=1em}}
{{:1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 3|title=[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 3|Group 3]]|only_pld_pts=y|show_matches=n|show_positions=n}}
{{col-end}}
{{col-begin|width=auto}}
{{col-break}}
{{:1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 4|title=[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 4|Group 4]]|only_pld_pts=y|show_matches=n|show_positions=n}}
{{col-break|gap=1em}}
{{:1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 5|title=[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 5|Group 5]]|only_pld_pts=y|show_matches=n|show_positions=n}}
{{col-break|gap=1em}}
{{:1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 6|title=[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 6|Group 6]]|only_pld_pts=y|show_matches=n|show_positions=n}}
{{col-end}}
{{col-begin|width=auto}}
{{col-break}}
{{:1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 7|title=[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group 7|Group 7]]|only_pld_pts=y|show_matches=n|show_positions=n}}
{{col-end}}

==Inter-confederation play-offs: CONMEBOL v OFC==
{{Main|1990 FIFA World Cup qualification (CONMEBOL–OFC play-off)}}

The winning team of the OFC qualification tournament played the CONMEBOL group winner with the weakest record in a home-and-away play-off. The winner of this play-off qualified for the 1990 FIFA World Cup.
<onlyinclude>{{TwoLegStart}}
{{TwoLegResult|'''{{fb-rt|COL}}'''||1–0|{{fb|ISR}}||[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification (CONMEBOL–OFC play-off)#First leg|1–0]]|[[1990 FIFA World Cup qualification (CONMEBOL–OFC play-off)#Second leg|0–0]]}}
{{TwoLeg end}}</onlyinclude>

==Top goalscorers==

;7 goals
*{{flagicon|BEL}} [[Marc Van Der Linden]]
*{{flagicon|KOR}} [[Hwang Sun-hong]]

;6 goals
*{{flagicon|CHN}} [[Ma Lin (footballer)|Ma Lin]]
*{{flagicon|SCO}} [[Mo Johnston]]
*{{flagicon|IRQ|1963}} [[Ahmed Radhi]] 
*{{flagicon|QAT}} [[Mahmoud Yaseen Al-Soufi]]

==Notes==
* On 12 August 1989, [[Samuel Okwaraji]] collapsed and died whilst playing for [[Nigeria national football team|Nigeria]] in their qualifying match against [[Angola national football team|Angola]], ten minutes before the end.
* One of the [[El Maracanazo|most bizarre incidents in World Cup history]] occurred on 3 September 1989. During the [[Brazil national football team|Brazil]] vs [[Chile national football team|Chile]] CONMEBOL qualifying match in Rio de Janeiro, Chile needed victory to retain any hope of qualification, but trailed 0–1 to Brazil. Around twenty minutes into the second half, Chilean goalkeeper [[Roberto Rojas (Chilean footballer)|Roberto "Cóndor" Rojas]] fell to the pitch with an apparent injury to his forehead. A firework, thrown from the stands by a Brazilian fan named [[Rosenery Mello do Nascimento]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cabecadecuia.com/noticias/97964/rosenery-mello-do-nascimento-a-fogueiteira-do-maracana-tem-morte-cerebral-por-aneurisma-no-rio-aos-45-anos.html|title=Rosenery Mello do Nascimento, a "Fogueteira do Maracanã", tem morte cerebral por aneurisma no Rio aos 45 anos|date=2011-06-06|work=Cabeça de Cuia|access-date=2011-06-06|language=pt|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110911134252/http://www.cabecadecuia.com/noticias/97964/rosenery-mello-do-nascimento-a-fogueiteira-do-maracana-tem-morte-cerebral-por-aneurisma-no-rio-aos-45-anos.html|archive-date=2011-09-11|url-status = dead}}</ref> was smouldering about some yards away. After carrying Rojas off the pitch, the Chilean players and coaches refused to return claiming conditions were not safe, and the match went unfinished. After studying video footage of the match showing that the firework had not made any contact with Rojas, FIFA awarded Brazil a 2–0 win, eliminating Chile from the 1990 World Cup. As punishment, Chile were barred from the qualifying process for the 1994 FIFA World Cup, and Roberto Rojas was banned for life<ref>[http://china.goal.com/en/Articolo.aspx?ContenutoId=400545 Goal.com – Editorial/Comment – Own Goal: Faking Being Hit By Objects<!-- Bot generated title -->] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071015191047/http://china.goal.com/en/Articolo.aspx?ContenutoId=400545 |date=2007-10-15 }}</ref> (subsequently lifted in 2001<ref name = "life ban">{{cite web |url=https://www.cbc.ca/sports/soccer/fifa-lifts-rojas-lifetime-ban-1.273702 |title=FIFA lifts Rojas lifetime ban |publisher=[[CBC Sports]] |date=30 April 2001 |access-date=9 April 2010}}</ref>) for his role in falsifying the story simulating an attack by the Brazilian fans. The incident is called the Maracanazo by the Chile national team since it took place in the [[Maracanã Stadium]].
* The decisive second leg of the CAF final round, tie between [[Egypt national football team|Egypt]] and [[Algeria national football team|Algeria]] in Cairo saw ugly scenes at its conclusion. The game was won 1–0 by Egypt, sending them to the 1990 World Cup at the expense of their opponent. After the final whistle, Algerian players and officials mobbed the referee and threw plant pots into the crowd. At the post-game conference, the Egyptian team doctor was blinded in one eye after being hit with a broken bottle thrown by an Algerian player. This was believed to be star striker [[Lakhdar Belloumi]] who was sentenced to prison for this offense, but he denied any wrongdoing and a twenty-year international arrest warrant was eventually quashed in 2009. Teammates had previously testified that reserve goalkeeper Kamel Kadri was instead the culprit.
* In the last game of the CONCACAF classification on November 19, 1989, [[United States men's national soccer team|United States]] played against [[Trinidad and Tobago national football team|Trinidad and Tobago]] in Port of Spain, both played for the last ticket to represent CONCACAF together with [[Costa Rica national football team|Costa Rica]] in the World Cup. The United States were third, they needed a win, while Trinidad and Tobago, who were in second, also needed a win or a draw, since they qualified for the first time in their history, both had 9 points, the Soca warriors were on goal difference plus 3, in the game [[Paul Caligiuri]] of the United States would score the only goal of the game giving the Americans qualification for the Soccer World Cup after 40 years of absence, Caligiuri's goal was dubbed [[Shot heard round the world (soccer)|Shot heard round the world]], The Yankees rose to second place with 11 points, the same as Costa Rica's, which won the CONCACAF Championship.
* [[Mexico national football team|Mexico]] did not participate in the CONCACAF qualification due to an improper line-up in the qualifying round for the [[1989 FIFA World Youth Championship]], where 4 players were over the allowed age. Initially, the sanction was only going to be for the U-20 team, but the intransigence and contempt of the Mexican managers against FIFA influenced the sanction to be extended to all national representatives for 2 years, this incident is known as [[Cachirules]].

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070623114247/http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/archive/edition=76/preliminaries/index.html 1990 FIFA World Cup Preliminaries] at [[FIFA]].com

{{1990 FIFA World Cup qualifiers}}
{{FIFA World Cup qualification}}
{{1989 in Japanese football}}

[[Category:1990 FIFA World Cup qualification| ]]
[[Category:1990 FIFA World Cup|Qualification]]
[[Category:FIFA World Cup qualification]]