Considering that there are 211 federations affiliated to Fifa and that only 79 of them were able to qualify for the world Cup in its 92-year history, playing in this tournament must be considered an achievement, a privilege.

Qatar 2022 will be the 22nd edition of this tournament to be played, and from its conception it promises to be unique, as does the fact that it will be played for the first time in the Middle Eastand also the need to schedule matches for the end of the year (November 21 to December 18), instead of the traditional dates of May, June and July.

In fact, in this next fifa world cup there are teams that break a long absence from this most prestigious stage in the world of football, such as Waleswho managed to keep the last place available for UEFA. It is therefore time to set off on a journey to meet those National teams who took a long time to enjoy the privilege of replaying a World Cup.

Longest streak by a national team to return to play in a FIFA World Cup

It’s a fact that not everyone survives World Cup qualifiers. With the exception of the first edition of this tournament, Uruguay 1930, in which participants were invited, the rest of the editions had to be reached by elimination with other neighboring countries. A voracious and increasingly complicated competition.

It is therefore normal that of the 79 countries that have played in the FIFA World Cup, very few have the rhythm of Brazil, Germany, Italy, Argentina, Mexico, France, England, Spain, Uruguay and Belgium, the countries that have played the most editions and therefore recurring, almost infallible guests of this tournament. Below are the national teams with the longest streaks of returning to a World Cup after already playing in one.

The longest streaks to return to the World Cup

Qatar 2022 marks the end of what has been the longest streak for a national team to return to a FIFA World Cup, which is precisely Wales’. Thanks to Gareth Bale and Wayne Hennesseythey secured the last European ticket to the World Cup.

– Wales1958 – 2022 – 64 years to return
– Egypt1934 – 1990 – 56 years to return
– Norway1938 – 1994 56 to return

4 decades to return to the World Cup

Here is a striking case, and it is that of the USMNTwhich although the new generations of football fans are accustomed to seeing the stars and stripes usually at the FIFA World Cup, as will happen at Qatar 2022, but it took a long time for that to happen.

– Turkey1954 – 2002 – 48 years to return
– Bolivia1950 – 1994 – 44 years to return
– North Korea1966 – 2010 – 44 years to return
– United States1950 – 1990 – 40 years to return

3 decades to return to the World Cup

Once again, Qatar 2022 is put on the map as the showcase of a national team ending a long streak, a prolonged absence from the FIFA World Cup, and that is Canadawho arrives with great enthusiasm at this tournament after qualifying as the best team in CONCACAF.

– Canada1986 – 2022 – 36 years to return
– Netherlands1938 – 1974 – 36 years to return
– Poland1938 – 1974 – 36 years to return
– Australia1974 – 2006 – 32 years to return
– Korea1954 – 1986 – 32 years to return
– Peru1982 – 2018 – 32 years to return
– Romania1938 – 1970 – 32 years to return

More than 2 decades to return to the World Cup

Less lively than the previous ones, but just as memorable, like that of Colombia, whose golden generation led by Carlos Valderrama, Freddy Rincón and René Higuita managed to return to a FIFA World Cup after a 28-year absence.

– Algeria1986 – 2014 – 28 years to return
– Colombia1962 – 1990 – 28 years to return
– Honduras1982 – 2010 – 28 years to return
– New Zealand1982 – 2010 – 28 years to return
– Paraguay1958 – 1986 – 28 years to return
– Swiss1966 – 1994 – 28 years to return
– North Ireland1958 – 1982 – 24 years to return

The longest current streaks without a World Cup return

Although long, all of the aforementioned spells have ended. Nevertheless, there are national teams that continue to suffer from the drought of not being able to enjoy another experience of participating in a FIFA World Cup. Strikingly, the longest streak in this category is even longer than the longest in the other group, Wales’ 64-year World Cup-free streak.

In the following listing, it should be noted that the streaks extend to the USA-Canada-Mexico World Cup 2026, since for Qatar 2022 these National Teams have not managed to end their absence from this prestigious tournament. However, they could still be extended if they fail to qualify for the 23rd edition of the World Cup again.

– Cuba1938 – 2026 – 88 years to eventually return
– Indonesia1938 – 2026 – 84 years to eventually return

– Israel1970 – 2026 -56 years to eventually return
– DR Congo1974 – 2026 – 52 years to maybe come back
– Haiti1974 – 2026 – 52 years to maybe come back

– El Salvador1982 – 2026 – 44 years to maybe come back
– Kuwait1982 – 2026 – 44 years to maybe come back
– Hungary1986 – 2026 – 40 years to eventually return
– Iraq1986- 2026 – 40 years to eventually return
– North Ireland1986 – 2026 – 40 years to eventually return

– United Arab Emirates1990 – 2026 – 36 years to maybe come back
– Bolivia1994 – 2026 – 32 years to maybe come back

– Austria1998 – 2026 – 28 years to eventually return
– Bulgaria1998 – 2026 – 28 years to eventually return
– Ireland2002 – 2026 – 24 years to eventually return
– Jamaica1998 – 2026 – 28 years to eventually return
– Norway1998 – 2026 – 28 years to eventually return
– Romania1998 – 2026 – 28 years to eventually return
– Scotland1998 – 2026 – 28 years to eventually return
– China2002 – 2026 -24 years to eventually return
– Turkey2002 – 2026 – 24 years to eventually return