2018 FIFA World Cup seeding facts for kids
The draw for the 2018 FIFA World Cup was a big event held on December 1, 2017. It took place in Moscow, Russia, at the State Kremlin Palace. This draw decided which of the 32 qualified national teams would play against each other in the first part of the tournament.
To make the groups fair, the teams were sorted into four different "pots," with eight teams in each pot. One team was picked from each pot to form a group. The draw started with teams from Pot 1 and finished with teams from Pot 4.
How Teams Were Ranked
Before the draw, all the teams were ranked using the FIFA World Rankings from October 2017. These rankings helped decide which pot each team would go into. The number next to each team below shows their ranking.
| Pot 1 | Pot 2 | Pot 3 | Pot 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
 Russia (hosts) (65) |
 Spain (8) |
 Denmark (19) |
 Serbia (38) |
 Germany (1) |
 Peru (10) |
 Iceland (21) |
 Nigeria (41) |
 Brazil (2) |
 Switzerland (11) |
 Costa Rica (22) |
 Australia (43) |
 Portugal (3) |
 England (12) |
 Sweden (25) |
 Japan (44) |
 Argentina (4) |
 Colombia (13) |
 Tunisia (28) |
 Morocco (48) |
 Belgium (5) |
 Mexico (16) |
 Egypt (30) |
 Panama (49) |
 Poland (6) |
 Uruguay (17) |
 Senegal (32) |
 South Korea (62) |
 France (7) |
 Croatia (18) |
 Iran (34) |
 Saudi Arabia (63) |
The Final Groups
After the draw, the 32 teams were placed into eight groups, from Group A to Group H. Each group had four teams.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total Points | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Group A | Russia |
Saudi Arabia |
Egypt |
Uruguay |
2,991 |
| Group B | Portugal |
Spain |
Morocco |
Iran |
4,128 |
| Group C | France |
Australia |
Peru |
Denmark |
4,101 |
| Group D | Argentina |
Iceland |
Croatia |
Nigeria |
4,099 |
| Group E | Brazil |
Switzerland |
Costa Rica |
Serbia |
4,415 |
| Group F | Germany |
Mexico |
Sweden |
South Korea |
4,151 |
| Group G | Belgium |
Panama |
Tunisia |
England |
3,953 |
| Group H | Poland |
Senegal |
Colombia |
Japan |
3,944 |
Based on the FIFA rankings, Group E was considered the strongest group, with a total of 4415 points from its teams. Group F was next with 4151 points. The group with the host nation, Russia (Group A), was the weakest, with 2991 points.
Images for kids
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These eight postage stamps from Russia show the draw for the 2018 FIFA World Cup group stage.
See also
In Spanish: Anexo:Sorteo de la Copa Mundial de Fútbol de 2018 para niños
