Palestine draws Afghanistan in W Cup qualifying

Palestine will play its first 2014 World Cup qualifier at home after drawing Afghanistan in the opening round of Asian matches in June. The game is scheduled for Ramallah. Palestine was eliminated four years ago when it could not fulfill an away leg in Singapore because of Israeli travel restrictions. Forty-three teams will compete for Asia’s four automatic slots in Brazil, plus an intercontinental playoff place. In the first round, the 16 lowest-ranked teams play eight home-and-away matches on June 29 and July 3. The winners join 22 higher-ranked teams in the second round in July. Those 15 winners then join Japan, South Korea, Australia, North Korea and Bahrain in a group stage. From Arabnews