Countdown to 2014 World Cup begins!

FIFA held a second-round draw for preliminary qualifying among weaker teams for the 2014 World Cup to be held in Brazil. In the qualifying region for the United States, it is the top team in Group A paired with Jamaica. Two other teams will join them from the second round of matches to weed out weaker teams.

In 2010, three members from CONCACAF qualified for the final 32-team tournament held in South Africa. The United States, Mexico and Honduras qualified in 2010 from North America, Central American and the Caribbean region. The final six-team group also included El Salvador, Costa Rica as well as Trinidad & Tobago

For the new draw, the United States and Jamaica will be joined by the winners of Group E and Group F in the second round of qualifying. Group E includes Grenada, Guatemala, St. Vincent/Grenadines, and Belize. Group F involves Haiti, Antigua & Barbuda, Curacao and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The draw favors the Americans for a few reasons. First, Team USA gets to avoid teams that gave them fits in qualifying last time, including Costa Rica and El Salvador, until much later in the process of getting to Brazil in 2014.

Because of an easier initial group stage, the Americans will be in a better position to take on tougher teams in the final group of six. The top two in each third round group play home-and-home matches against each other to determine the best three national teams. Mexico is paired with Costa Rica and may get to face off with El Salvador and Trinidad again for the 2014 qualifiers. The Mexicans may not even make it out of their "group of death" which in turn makes it better for their top rival, Team USA.

The third group will consist of Honduras, Cuba and likely contenders Canada and Panama. While everyone else knocks the snot out of each other, the United States should cruise into the final group of six teams if it simply plays soccer.

Team USA's playing ability rests with new head coach Juergen Klinsmann, who will have plenty of time to get his team together. The initial qualifying stages have to be complete first before the United States has to play a single qualifying match. Until then, it will play friendlies to help determine who gets playing time for the new skipper in later matches leading up to the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.