Fifa, the governing body of world football, have yet to decide how the World Cup final group stages will be seeded.

With all 32 teams heading to South Africa now confirmed – Uruguay were the last to qualify in the early hours of Thursday morning – attention is turning to plans for the tournament itself.

Seeding has been a touchy subject for Fifa this month. The Republic of Ireland in particular were angered by the decision to seed the European region play-offs, especially as no decision was made until September - more than a year after qualifying began.

Robbie Keane, the Republic forward, led criticism after Wednesday night's 1-1 draw with France in Paris which saw them eliminated from the competition 2-1 on aggregate. France's equalising goal came despite a clear handball from Thierry Henry in the build-up.

"They're all probably clapping hands, [Uefa president] Michel Platini sitting up there on the phone to [Fifa president] Sepp Blatter, probably texting each other, delighted with the result," Keane told BBC Five Live.

"Germany had a chance of being in the [play-offs] as well. With two massive countries there's no way in a million years is there going to be fair draw."

Fifa will decide on the seeding system for the group stages when the organising committee meet on December 2, two days before the draw.

Seeding is usually decided on past World Cup performances, though Fifa world rankings could also be taken into account. With 32 teams, the 2010 tournament will see eight four-team groups.