The seedings for the European section of World Cup qualification for Qatar 2022 were confirmed on Friday morning, and as expected, the Republic of Ireland have been placed in Pot 3.
Ireland's poor form, which goes back to the 2018 World Cup play-off has seen the side drop into the third group, while that has also been reflected in the latest FIFA rankings as Stephen Kenny's side have dropped six places to 42nd.
The draw will take place in Zurich on 7 December, and Ireland could be drawn alongside Gareth Southgate's England who are in the top pot of seeds, alongside the world's number one-ranked team Belgium and reigning world champions France. Portugal, Spain, Italy, Croatia, Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands are also in Pot 1.
Ireland will be looking for a favourable selection from Pot 2, which contains Switzerland, Wales, Poland, Sweden, Austria, Ukraine, Serbia, Turkey, Slovakia and Romania.
Northern Ireland and Scotland have also been placed in Pot 3.
In total, 55 teams will be split into five groups of five and five groups of six when the draw takes place.
The qualifiers will be played between March and November next year.
The winners of the 10 groups will qualify automatically for the finals, which for the first time will be played in November and December of 2022 to avoid the punishing summer heat in the Middle East.
A further three places will be fought out between the 10 group runners-up and the two highest-ranked teams from the Nations League who have not already qualified or finished in a runners-up spot.
These 12 teams will be divided into three play-off paths, each featuring four countries, to determine the final three European berths.
