Brazil, Germany Qualify

By GRAHAME L. JONES

Nov. 15, 2001 12 AM PT

TIMES STAFF WRITER

Former world champions Brazil and Germany swept aside all doubters Wednesday and qualified for soccer’s 2002 World Cup emphatically.

The Germans, winners in 1954, 1974 and 1990, scored three goals in the first 15 minutes en route to a 4-1 demolition of Ukraine in front of 52,000 fans at the Westfalen Stadium in Dortmund, Germany.

Brazil, the only nation to take part in every World Cup since the first in 1930 and winner of the tournament in 1958, 1962, 1970 and 1994, shut out Venezuela, 3-0, to the delight of more than 60,000 fans at Castelao Stadium in San Luis, Brazil.

Also qualifying Wednesday for Japan/Korea 2002 were Turkey, which overwhelmed Austria, 5-0, in Istanbul; Belgium, which upset the Czech Republic, 1-0, in Prague, and Slovenia, whose 1-1 tie against Romania in Bucharest was enough to earn it its first World Cup berth.

Thirty of the 32 eventual participants now have qualified for the May 31-June 30 world championship. Today, Iran plays Ireland in Tehran, needing to overturn a 2-0 Irish lead from the first leg if it hopes to qualify.

The final World Cup place will go to either Australia or Uruguay, who play a two-game playoff series next Tuesday and Nov. 25.

Germany’s victory brought a quick congratulatory telephone call from the nation’s chancellor, Gerhard Schroeder, who wished Coach Rudi Voeller’s squad well.

Equally pleased was Franz Beckenbauer, who led Germany to its 1974 triumph as captain and to its 1990 victory as coach and who presides over the 2006 World Cup, which Germany will host.

“I thought they played superb football,” Beckenbauer said. “We could have scored more, but it’s wonderful we are going to the World Cup.”

Goals by Michael Ballack in the fourth minute, Oliver Neuville in the 11th and Marko Rehmer in the 15th were enough to end Ukraine’s hopes. Ballack applied the finishing touch in the 51st minute, assuring Germany the win and ending a difficult time for the national team.

“We have been under massive pressure over the past eight or nine days,” said goalkeeper Oliver Kahn. “If you can come through such pressure then there is nothing to fear [in the World Cup itself].”

Brazilian fans and media had put their team under even more intense pressure, so much so that 35,000 showed up just to scrutinize the team’s training Tuesday for Wednesday’s match.

Brazil had lost only one qualifying game in its history before losing six in the current marathon 18-game campaign. It fired three coaches during the process, and several times appeared likely to fail altogether.

Like Germany, however, it quickly took charge of its final match, with striker Luizao scoring in the 12th and 19th minutes and midfielder Rivaldo adding a third goal in the 35th. That proved enough.

“We suffered for 17 games and I thank the Brazilians who suffered with us,” said defender Roberto Carlos.

With the victory, Brazil clinched the fourth World Cup berth from South America, leaving Uruguay and Colombia to battle for a playoff against Australia.

Uruguay barely managed to secure it by tying already-qualified Argentina, 1-1, in Montevideo, Uruguay.

It took the lead after 18 minutes on a goal by Dario Silva, but Argentina’s Claudio Lopez tied it up just before halftime.

In Asuncion, Paraguay, meanwhile, Colombia was trying to score as many goals as it could in an effort to overtake Uruguay on goal-difference, since the teams ended up tied on points. It tallied four in a 4-0 rout of host Paraguay, with Victor Hugo Aristizabal scoring three times and Rafael Castillo once. That still left Colombia one shy, however, and it was eliminated.

Back in Europe, Turkey, which had not played in the World Cup since 1954, made certain of its participation in 2002 by drubbing Austria.

So did Belgium, whose 86th-minute penalty by Marc Wilmots earned it a sixth consecutive World Cup berth.

Going for the first time--along with other debutantes China, Ecuador and Senegal--will be Slovenia, which got a vital goal from Mladen Rudonja in its 1-1 tie with Romania and advanced on the strength of its 2-1 victory in the first leg.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

World Cup

Thirty-two nations will take part in the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea. So far, the following 30 have qualified:

AFRICA

* Cameroon, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Tunisia

ASIA

* China, Japan (as co-host), Saudi Arabia, South Korea (as co-host)

CONCACAF

* Costa Rica, Mexico, United States

EUROPE

* Belgium, Croatia, Denmark, England, France (as defending champion), Germany, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey

SOUTH AMERICA