2018 World Cup draw - how it works

The draw for the 2018 World Cup qualification campaign takes place in St Petersburg on July 25 at 1700 BST. The 52 European countries will be split into seven groups of six teams and two groups of five teams. England, along with France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Holland, will be in a group of six teams at the request of UEFA in order to maximise television income.Hosts Russia will qualify automatically.The winners of each group will qualify for Russia 2018, while the eight best group runners-up will take part in a play-off in November 2017. Seeding pots for the draw:Pot 1: Germany, Belgium, Holland, Portugal, Romania, England, Wales, Spain, Croatia Pot 2: Slovakia, Austria, Italy, Switzerland, Czech Republic, France, Iceland, Denmark, Bosnia-Herzegovina Pot 3: Ukraine, Scotland, Poland, Hungary, Sweden, Albania, Northern Ireland, Serbia, Greece Pot 4: Turkey, Slovenia, Israel, Republic of Ireland, Norway, Bulgaria, Faroe Islands, Montenegro, Estonia Pot 5: Cyprus, Latvia, Armenia, Finland, Belarus, Macedonia, Azerbaijan, Lithuania, Moldova Pot 6: Kazakhstan, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein, Georgia, Malta, San Marino, Andorra

Source: PA