Santiago  - Chile and Uruguay played out a goalless draw Wednesday in Santiago, in a clash between rivals for South America's spots in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

Both teams obtained key wins over the weekend to boost their chances of playing in the World Cup and sought to build momentum Wednesday.

A header from Chilean striker Alexis Sanchez hit the crossbar in the 24th minute, before Mauricio Isla was sent off for the hosts in the 33rd minute. In the second half, Uruguay looked closer to opening the score, but the goalless draw persisted until the final whistle.

Now Chile stand second in the qualifiers with 20 points in 12 games and lie four points behind Paraguay. Uruguay, in turn, remain fifth with 17 points.

In South America's World Cup qualifiers, each of the 10 sides plays each of the other nine teams at home and away. The top four win a place in the event. The fifth-placed team has a chance to advance through a play-off against a representative of the North, Central American and Caribbean region.

Following this week's games, the qualifiers resume in June. (dpa)