The U.S. men's national team may not be taking part, but the World Cup will still go on, and Monday was a big day on the road to Russia.
FIFA's world ranking for October was released, and while most roll their eyes at the FIFA rankings (the USA actually improved by a position after being eliminated from World Cup contention, so...), they hold a significant role in the World Cup. Per FIFA procedure, the October rankings are used to determine the pots for the Dec. 1 draw in Moscow. Instead of one seeded pot and three pots determined by logistical and geographical reasoning, FIFA has changed its ways so that all four pots are determined purely based on the rankings.