7. Australia
How they qualified: Runners-up in their group in the 4th Round of Asian qualifying
Last time: Group Stage, lost out to Ghana on goal difference
FIFA Ranking: 53
What are their chances in Brazil? In what may be the most sports mad country in the world, football has always had to play second fiddle in the Australian mindset to cricket, two codes of rugby, their own type of football, swimming, and maybe more. Nevertheless, Aussie interest in "soccer" has improved along with their team, the Socceroos. Having only qualified for one World Cup in the 20th century, in 1974, Australia are now competing in their third consecutive tournament. The difference has been made by playing in the much more competitive Asian region rather than against the tiny Pacific islands that make up the Oceania region. In 2006 the Socceroos, guided by the experienced and talented Guus Hiddink, proved unexpectedly impressive, often the better side in the 1-0 defeat to eventual champions Italy that sent them out of the tournament. In 2010 they missed out on a place in the last 16 on goal difference and that gradual decline in fortunes is likely to be the story again this time round. The golden generation of Australian football over the last decade are past their best now, captain Lucas Neill, once of Blackburn and West Ham, now playing in Japan, is 35, star forward Tim Cahill, who left Everton to join Thierry Henry in New York, is 33, while goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer, now the Chelsea reserve, is 41. Their replacements, players like Bayer Leverkusen forward Robbie Kruse, have yet to convince that they will enjoy the same success. The Socceroos are currently managed by Holger Osieck, the assistant manager during West Germany's victorious Italia 90 campaign. In 2011, Osieck masterminded an impressive victory against his home country, who were, admittedly understrength, Australia becoming the only team to beat Germany that year. More recent results have been significantly less impressive, with friendly defeats to Scotland, Romania and China, as well as last month's 6-0 trouncing from Brazil. A respectable performance in the Group Stage is probably the best that Australia can hope for this time.