If Asia wants an extra automatic berth to future World Cups, then it will have to earn it, FIFA president Sepp Blatter told the Japanese media on Wednesday.
Speaking at the Japanese Press Center in Tokyo, Blatter confirmed that as the winner of this year's World Cup won't automatically qualify for the 2006 tournament in Germany, there will be an extra berth available to allocate to one of the six confederations.
Both the Asian confederation, which has four berths in this year's World Cup, and the Oceania confederation, which has none, are hoping to capitalize on this extra slot.