2018 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group B facts for kids
The 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification UEFA Group B was a football competition where six European teams played against each other to try and get a spot in the 2018 FIFA World Cup. This group was one of nine similar groups organized by UEFA, which is the main football body in Europe.
The teams in Group B were: Portugal, Switzerland, Hungary, Faroe Islands, Latvia, and Andorra. Each team played against every other team twice, once at home and once away.
At the end of the matches, Portugal won the group, which meant they automatically qualified for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. Switzerland finished in second place and moved on to the "second round," also known as the play-offs, where they had another chance to qualify.
How the Group Worked
In football qualification groups, teams earn points for their matches:
- A win gives 3 points.
- A draw (a tie) gives 1 point.
- A loss gives 0 points.
The team with the most points at the end of all the games wins the group. If two teams have the same number of points, other factors like "goal difference" (how many more goals they scored than they let in) help decide who ranks higher.
Group B Standings
Here is how the teams ended up in Group B:
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Moves on to |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Portugal |
10 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 32 | 4 | +28 | 27 | Qualification to 2018 FIFA World Cup |
| 2 |  Switzerland |
10 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 23 | 7 | +16 | 27 | Second round |
| 3 |  Hungary |
10 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 14 | 14 | 0 | 13 | |
| 4 |  Faroe Islands |
10 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 16 | -12 | 9 | |
| 5 |  Latvia |
10 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 7 | 18 | –11 | 7 | |
| 6 |  Andorra |
10 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 2 | 23 | –21 | 4 |
Portugal and Switzerland both ended with 27 points. However, Portugal had a much better goal difference (+28 compared to Switzerland's +16), which is why Portugal finished first.
Top Goalscorers
Many players scored goals during the Group B qualification matches. Here are some of the players who scored the most goals for their teams:
- 15 goals
- Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal)
- 9 goals
- André Silva (Portugal)
- 5 goals
- Ádám Szalai (Hungary)
- 4 goals
Haris Seferović (Switzerland)
- 3 goals
- Valērijs Šabala (Latvia)
- Stephan Lichtsteiner (Switzerland)
- 2 goals
- Ádám Gyurcsó (Hungary)
- João Cancelo (Portugal)
- William Carvalho (Portugal)
- Admir Mehmedi (Switzerland)
- Ricardo Rodríguez (Switzerland)
- Granit Xhaka (Switzerland)
- Steven Zuber (Switzerland)
- 1 goal
- Alexandre Martínez (Andorra)
- Marc Rebés (Andorra)
- Rógvi Baldvinsson (Faroe Islands)
- Jóan Símun Edmundsson (Faroe Islands)
- Sonni Nattestad (Faroe Islands)
- Gilli Rólantsson (Faroe Islands)
- Dániel Böde (Hungary)
- Balázs Dzsudzsák (Hungary)
- Zoltán Gera (Hungary)
- Richárd Guzmics (Hungary)
- Tamás Kádár (Hungary)
- Ádám Lang (Hungary)
- Roland Ugrai (Hungary)
- Gints Freimanis (Latvia)
- Dāvis Ikaunieks (Latvia)
- Igors Tarasovs (Latvia)
- Artūrs Zjuzins (Latvia)
- Bruno Alves (Portugal)
- João Moutinho (Portugal)
- Nélson Oliveira (Portugal)
- Eren Derdiyok (Switzerland)
- Josip Drmić (Switzerland)
- Blerim Džemaili (Switzerland)
- Breel Embolo (Switzerland)
- Fabian Frei (Switzerland)
- Fabian Schär (Switzerland)
- Xherdan Shaqiri (Switzerland)
- Valentin Stocker (Switzerland)
- 1 own goal
- Johan Djourou (playing against Portugal)
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