A total of 107 teams entered the 1978 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds, which began with the preliminary qualification draw on 20 November 1975 at Guatemala City. Argentina, as the hosts, and West Germany, as the defending champions, qualified automatically, leaving 14 spots open for competition.
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | 7 March 1976 – 11 December 1977 |
| Teams | 107 (from 6 confederations) |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 252 |
| Goals scored | 723 (2.87 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) |  Roberto Bettega (9 goals) |
← 1974 1982 → | |
The 16 places would be distributed among the continental zones as follows:
- Europe (UEFA): 9 or 10 places. One place went to automatic qualifier West Germany, while nine places were contested by 31 teams. The team coming ninth in qualifying would advance to the intercontinental play-offs against a team from CONMEBOL.
- South America (CONMEBOL): 3 or 4 places. One place automatically went to host nation Argentina, while the other three places were contested by nine teams. The team coming third in qualifying would advance to the intercontinental play-offs (against a team from UEFA).
- North, Central America and Caribbean (CONCACAF): 1 place, contested by 17 teams.
- Africa (CAF): 1 place, contested by 26 teams.
- Asia (AFC) and Oceania (OFC): 1 place, contested by 22 teams.
A total of 95 teams played at least one qualifying match. A total of 252 qualifying matches were played, and 723 goals were scored (an average of 2.87 per match).
Confederation qualification
editAFC and OFC
edit- Iran qualified.
CAF
edit- Tunisia qualified.
CONCACAF
edit- Mexico qualified.
CONMEBOL
editFirst round
editGroup 1
edit| Rank | Team | Pts | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Brazil
|
6 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 1 | +7 |
| 2 |  Paraguay
|
4 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| 3 |  Colombia
|
2 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 8 | −7 |
Group 2
edit| Rank | Team | Pts | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Bolivia
|
7 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 3 | +5 |
| 2 |  Uruguay
|
4 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 4 | +1 |
| 3 |  Venezuela
|
1 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 8 | −6 |
Group 3
edit| Rank | Team | Pts | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Peru
|
6 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 2 | +6 |
| 2 |  Chile
|
5 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 3 | +2 |
| 3 |  Ecuador
|
1 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 9 | −8 |
Final round
edit| Rank | Team | Pts | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brazil
|
4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 | +9 |
| 2 | Peru
|
2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 1 | +4 |
| 3 | Bolivia
|
0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 13 | −13 |
Brazil and Peru qualified. Bolivia advanced to the inter-confederation play-offs.
UEFA
edit| Group 1 | Group 2 | Group 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: [citation needed]
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Source: [citation needed]
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Source: [citation needed]
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| Group 4 | Group 5 | Group 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: [citation needed]
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Source: [citation needed]
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Source: [citation needed]
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| Group 7 | Group 8 | Group 9 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: [citation needed]
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Source: [citation needed]
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Source: [citation needed]
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Hungary advanced to the UEFA–CONMEBOL play-off.
Inter-confederation play-offs: UEFA v CONMEBOL
editThe teams would play against each other on a home-and-away basis. The winner would qualify.
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Hungary 
|
9–2 | Bolivia
|
6–0 | 3–2 |
Qualified teams
edit
Country qualified for World Cup
Country failed to qualify
Country did not enter World Cup
Country not a FIFA member
The following 16 teams qualified for the 1978 FIFA World Cup:
| Team | Date of qualification | Finals appearance | Streak | Last appearance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Argentina (hosts)
|
6 July 1966 | 7th | 2 | 1974 |
 Austria
|
30 October 1977 | 4th | 1 | 1958 |
| Brazil
|
14 July 1977 | 11th | 11 | 1974 |
 France
|
16 November 1977 | 7th | 1 | 1966 |
| Hungary
|
30 November 1977 | 7th | 1 | 1966 |
 Iran
|
25 November 1977 | 1st | 1 | — |
| Italy
|
3 December 1977 | 9th | 5 | 1974 |
 Mexico
|
19 October 1977 | 8th | 1 | 1970 |
 Netherlands
|
26 October 1977 | 4th | 2 | 1974 |
| Peru
|
17 July 1977 | 3rd | 1 | 1970 |
 Poland
|
21 September 1977 | 3rd | 2 | 1974 |
 Scotland
|
12 October 1977 | 4th | 2 | 1974 |
 Spain
|
30 November 1977 | 5th | 1 | 1966 |
 Sweden
|
30 October 1977 | 7th | 3 | 1974 |
 Tunisia
|
11 December 1977 | 1st | 1 | — |
 West Germany (defending champions)
|
7 July 1974 | 9th | 7 | 1974 |
Top goalscorers
edit- 9 goals
- 7 goals
- 6 goals
Notes
edit- For the first time, over 100 teams entered qualification for the World Cup.
- Statistically, this was the most difficult World Cup to qualify for. Taking the two automatic places into account, and excluding twelve teams who withdrew before playing, 95 teams competed for the remaining 14 places (14.7%). The number of spots was increased to 24 for the next World Cup.
- Tunisia's victory over Morocco on penalties was the first penalty shootout in World Cup qualification matches.