The [1934 FIFA World Cup](https://bliptext.com/articles/1934-fifa-world-cup) was the first World Cup for which teams had to qualify, after the finalists in the inaugural 1930 World Cup had participated by invitation from FIFA. With 32 teams having entered the 1934 competition, FIFA organized qualification rounds to select 16 teams for the finals. Even Italy, the host of the World Cup, had to earn its spot, the only time this has been the case. The previous champion Uruguay refused to defend its title because many European nations had declined to take part in the 1930 World Cup, held in Uruguay. Of the 32 teams which entered, The first match, between Sweden and Estonia, took place in Stockholm on 11 June 1933, with Swedish player Knut Kroon scoring the first goal. The last match was played in Rome only three days before the start of the tournament, as late entrant United States beat Mexico to become the final team to qualify.

Format

The 32 teams were divided into 12 groups, based on geographical considerations, as follows: The 12 groups had different rules, as follows: Key:

Groups

Group 1

Estonia v Lithuania was not played since neither team could qualify with a win. Sweden qualified.

Group 2

11–1 on aggregate; Spain qualified.

Group 3

Italy qualified, as Greece declined to play the second match.

Group 4

Bulgaria withdrew, and the remaining matches were not played since Hungary and Austria were already assured of the top two spots. Hungary and Austria qualified.

Group 5

Czechoslovakia qualified.

Group 6

Romania and Switzerland qualified.

Group 7

Netherlands and Belgium qualified (Belgium finished above the Irish Free State on goal average).

Group 8

Germany v France was not played since both teams were already assured of the top two spots. Germany and France qualified.

Group 9

Peru withdrew, so Brazil qualified automatically.

Group 10

Chile withdrew, so Argentina qualified automatically.

Group 11

First round

10–2 on aggregate; Cuba advanced to the Second Round.

Second round

12–3 on aggregate; Mexico advanced to the Final Round.

Final round

The match to decide whether the United States or Mexico would qualify was played only three days before the start of the final tournament, as the United States submitted their entry too late. Thus, the match was played in Italy, so that the winner would effectively stay in the country for the tournament. United States qualified.

Group 12

The Palestine football team consisted exclusively of Jewish and British players. FIFA states, in reference to the 1930s Palestine Mandate team, that the 'Palestine team' that participated in previous competitions in the 1930s was actually the forerunner of today's Israel team, and as such bears no relation to the modern-day Palestine national team. However, the region currently known as Palestine is considered one of the first Asian teams to compete in the FIFA World Cup qualifiers. 11–2 on aggregate; Egypt qualified.

Qualified teams

Only six of the teams qualifying for the final competition – Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, France, Romania, and the USA – had already attended the World Cup in 1930.

Goalscorers

Footnotes