This scheme was a significant change from previous editions of qualification as all entrants had the ability to advance to the final tournament.
In previous years only those nations belonging to the First Category of European women's football were able to qualify, with a system approximating promotion and relegation between qualification tournaments operating.
[1] Sweden Norway Denmark England France Russia Ukraine Italy Finland Iceland Spain Czech Republic Netherlands Scotland Republic of Ireland Poland Switzerland Austria Serbia Belarus Belgium Greece Portugal Hungary Slovenia Slovakia Israel Wales Romania Northern Ireland Turkey Bulgaria Croatia Armenia Bosnia and Herzegovina Kazakhstan Azerbaijan Estonia Malta Macedonia Georgia We report in bold the teams which actually qualified to the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup.
The play-off draw was seeded according to results in this qualifying competition and those for UEFA Women's EURO 2009.
The winner advanced to play the third-placed team from the CONCACAF qualification for a spot in the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup finals.