Central American side Costa Rica became the 32nd country to qualify for the Qatar 2022 World Cup.
Joel Campbell’s early goal was enough for his country to reach a third successive tournament as they defeated 10-man New Zealand 1-0 in their intercontinental playoff on Tuesday.
The former Arsenal striker scored in the 3rd minute to slot in a cross from Jewison Bennette.
New Zealand had an equaliser ruled out by VAR for a foul in the build-up to Chris Wood putting the ball in the back of the net in the 39th minute.
New Zealand ended the match with 10 men as substitute Kosta Barbarouses was sent off for fouling Francisco Calvo.
Costa Rica have now qualified for the World Cup six times and this will be their third successive appearance.
Their best performance came in 2014 when they reached the quarter-finals, finishing top of a group that included Uruguay, Italy and England, before beating Greece on penalties in the last 16 and losing in a shootout to the Netherlands.
The World Cup begins on 21 November with Costa Rica playing 2010 champions Spain in their opener on 23 November.
It’s the first time the worldcup will be played in the winter due to the difference in weather condition of the the host country Qatar.
