The tournament was the first of its kind to not have a representative from Australia competing, due to the nation's migration to the Asian Football Confederation, meaning the winners of the competition would for the first time be from a nation outside of Australia.
Australia's departure from the OFC meant that qualification for the 2006 FIFA Club World Cup was under question – in March 2006 it was reported that the Oceania champions would have to play a preliminary match against the J. League champions for a place in the main competition. However, later that month, it was announced that FIFA president Sepp Blatter had been unable to get the necessary support for the new format and as a result Oceania retained direct entry to 2006 FIFA Club World Cup. FIFA reviewed the format the following year.[1]
A preliminary round was held to determine the 8th and final participant in the final. The format was a group stage, with each team playing each other once. The winner of the group would qualify for the main draw.
The eight remaining teams were separated into two groups, each team playing the other teams once. The top two teams from each group progress to the semi-finals. This First Round was held in Albany, New Zealand.
