Immediately after the 1958 World Cup in Sweden, many teams rushed to complain to FIFA due to the immensely short time to prepare between games at the World Cup, before and during the WC. However, FIFA couldn't come to a solution. The qualifiers would take a good year to complete, and then the WC would kick in. Without cutting corners on national leagues, this would be impossible. However, UEFA president Ebbe Schwartz had an idea. His EuroCup would see the light of day soon, and he wanted the teams to actually fight like lions for the trophy, instead of disregarding it as a simple B-rated tournament. To put more pressure on the teams and have a better tournament, Schwartz proposed to Arthur Drewry, FIFA president, to have Continental Cups serve as qualifiers for the World Cup tourney. A set number of teams for each region would be set, plus intercontinental playoffs. This would mean teams would have between one and two full years to prepare for the World Cup. Drewry liked the idea, and during a session of FIFA, the proposal was adopted before the Euro 1960 semi-finals, much to the dismay of teams such as Germany, who hadn't participated. However, 1962 would be the first WC using this format, and not the last, as many more will follow.
This is my first TL, and I had no idea where to post it, so by all means if I'm posting it at the wrong place, do tell me. The concept might be a bit ASB, but it draws of real concerns team coaches faced at the time.