Futsal EURO 2022 qualifying round report

Bosnia and Herzegovina, Belgium, Poland, Albania, Hungary, Georgia, Latvia, Moldova and Norway booked places in next year’s home-and-away UEFA Futsal EURO 2022 qualifying group stage after topping their qualifying round groups.

The road to UEFA Futsal EURO 2022, which has a new format and an expanded 16-team final tournament in the Netherlands, began with the qualifying round running over the last four days.

Hoping to join the nine group winners are 14 other sides who have reached the qualifying round play-offs: runners-up Cyprus, Armenia, Greece, San Marino, Lithuania, Germany, Denmark, Israel and North Macedonia plus the five best third-placed teams – Bulgaria, England, Turkey, Switzerland and Montenegro (who pipped Wales due to their superior coefficient after both were equal on all other criteria including disciplinary record). The play-off draw is on 13 February.

• Results
• Group winners progress directly to the qualifying group stage (played home and away in 2021) to join 16 teams in FIFA Futsal World Cup elite round given byes: Azerbaijan, Belarus, Croatia, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Italy, Kazakhstan, Portugal (holders), Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Ukraine
• The nine runners-up and five best third-placed teams (not counting results against fourth-placed teams) enter the qualifying play-offs for the remaining seven qualifying group spots
  

Final standings 

Bosnia and Herzegovina are safely throughFedja Krvavac

Group A
Through to qualifying group stage: Bosnia and Herzegovina (hosts)
Through to play-offs: Cyprus, Switzerland*
Also in group: Gibraltar

Group B
Through to qualifying group stage: Belgium (hosts)
Through to play-offs: Armenia, Montenegro*
Also in group: Scotland

Group C
Through to qualifying group stage: Poland
Through to play-offs: Greece
Also in group: Sweden, Malta (hosts)

San Marino made national historyBulgarian Football Union

Group D
Through to qualifying group stage: Albania
Through to play-offs: San Marino, Bulgaria (hosts)*
Also in group: Andorra

Group E
Through to qualifying group stage: Hungary
Through to play-offs: Lithuania (hosts), Turkey*
Also in group: Northern Ireland

World Cup hosts Lithuania reached the EURO play-offsElvis Žaldaris

Group F
Through to qualifying group stage: Georgia (hosts)
Through to play-offs: Germany
Also in group: Kosovo, Austria

Group G
Through to qualifying group stage: Latvia (hosts)
Through to play-offs: Denmark
Also in group: Estonia

Group H
Through to qualifying group stage: Moldova (hosts)
Through to play-offs: Israel, England*

Norway celebrate a goal against WalesFAW/Same Old Smith photography

Group I
Through to qualifying group stage: Norway
Through to play-offs: North Macedonia (hosts)
Also in group: Wales

*Five third-placed teams with best record against the top two in their group

• San Marino advanced through a round of UEFA national-team competition for the first time at any level (football or futsal)
• Malta, San Marino and Scotland all recorded their first competitive futsal points
• Austria and Northern Ireland made their debuts (in a record entry of 50 nations)

Road to the Netherlands

• Finals hosts: Netherlands
  
• New format explained