From 1998 to 2011 , the teams were divided into four groups .
From 1998 to 2011 , the teams were played each other in a round robin format preliminary round , and the top 3 teams in each group advance into the qualifying round .
From 1998 to 2011 , the teams were divided into four groups and played each other in a round robin format preliminary round , and the top 3 teams in each group advance into the qualifying round .