2002 FIFA World Cup qualification (OFC–CONMEBOL play-off)
| Event | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| (on aggregate) | |||||||
| First leg | |||||||
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| Date | 20 November 2001 | ||||||
| Venue | MCG, Melbourne | ||||||
| Referee | Graziano Cesari (Italy) | ||||||
| Attendance | 84,656 | ||||||
| Weather | Partly cloudy 15 °C (59 °F) | ||||||
| Second leg | |||||||
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| Date | 25 November 2001 | ||||||
| Venue | Estadio Centenario, Montevideo | ||||||
| Referee | Ali Bujsaim (UAE) | ||||||
| Attendance | 62,000 | ||||||
| Weather | Clear 16 °C (61 °F) | ||||||
The 2002 FIFA World Cup OFC–CONMEBOL qualification play-off was a two-legged home-and-away tie between the winners of the Oceania qualifying tournament, Australia, and the fifth-placed team from the South American qualifying tournament, Uruguay. The games were played on 20 November and 25 November 2001 in Melbourne and Montevideo respectively. Australia was hoping to play in the FIFA World Cup for the first time since 1974 and Uruguay since 1990.
In the first leg, Australia beat Uruguay 1–0 in Melbourne while Uruguay took revenge in the second leg, easily defeating Australia 3–0 in Montevideo. Uruguay won the series 3–1 on aggregate, therefore qualifying for the World Cup held in Korea and Japan.
Australian players were spat on, punched and abused by a mob of Uruguayan fans on arrival at Montevideo's international airport for the second leg.