Dutch in 2010WC

Japan, The Netherlands, Australia and South Korea became the first nations to qualify for next year’s World Cup, joining hosts South Africa in the 32-nation field.

Japan, The Netherlands, Australia and South Korea became the first nations to qualify for next year’s World Cup, joining hosts South Africa in the 32-nation field.

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England put themselves in good position to advance, winning 4-0 in Kazakhstan to improve to 6-0 in Europe Group Six. Japan became the first country to qualify for the second straight World Cup, winning 1-0 at Uzbekistan.

Australia will appear in back-to-back World Cups for the first time following a scoreless draw at Qatar. It will be the third World Cup appearance for the Socceroos.

Australia and Japan each have 14 points with two games left, ensuring they can’t be caught by rivals. South Korea reached their seventh consecutive World Cup with 2-0 victory over UAE. The unbeaten Netherlands grabbed Europe's first berth, winning 2-1 against Iceland.