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The FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial global men’s football tournament played between the senior national sides of FIFA member countries, is set to take place for the 22nd time in 2022. Qatar will host it from November 20 until December 18, 2022. After the event in Japan and South Korea in 2002, this will be the second World Cup wholly staged in Asia and also the first World Championship ever to be contested in the Arab world. The tournament’s 22nd edition is also the last to include 32 teams, the following edition in 2026 being confirmed as a 48-nation tournament. France won the previous edition in Russia in 2018 and was the sixth to be selected for this year’s World Cup. Qatar was the first of the 32 nations to be included on the list, ensuring they would be the hosts.
Key Takeaways
- The tournament’s 22nd edition is also the last to include 32 teams, the following edition in 2026 being confirmed as a 48-nation tournament.
- The Qatar 2022 World Cup begins on Sunday, November 20, at Al Bayt Stadium, when the hosts face Ecuador in Group A.
- The final will occur a week before Christmas, on Sunday, December 18, at Doha’s Lusail Stadium.
- The international football event will occur in the middle of the league football season.
- The goal of FIFA is to organise and promote football globally.
- Apart from its predecessor, the 2022 World Cup would be held in the winter because the temperature in Qatar during summer is too harsh for football.
Dates and Venue of the 2022 Championship
The Qatar 2022 World Cup begins on Sunday, November 20, at Al Bayt Stadium, when the hosts face Ecuador in Group A. The tournament was supposed to start the next day with Senegal’s game against the Netherlands at Al Thumama Stadium. Still, Qatar’s game was shifted forward in August to permit them to open the home tournament.
Below is a comprehensive analysis of the number of games, audience capacity, & stadiums.
| Venue | Capacity | No. of matches |
| Lusail Stadium, Lusail | 80,000 | 10 |
| Al Bayt Stadium, Al Khor | 60,000 | 9 |
| Al Janoub Stadium, Al Wakrah | 40,000 | 7 |
| Ahmad bin Ali Stadium, Al Rayyan | 40,000 | 7 |
| Khalifa International Stadium, Doha | 40,000 | 8 |
| Education City Stadium, Doha | 40,000 | 8 |
| Stadium 974, Ras Abu Aboud, Doha | 40,000 | 7 |
| Al Thumama Stadium, Doha | 40,000 | 8 |
World Cup groupings
The World Cup in 2022 will start with 32 teams divided into eight groups of four.
- Group A: Ecuador, Qatar, Netherlands, Senegal.
- Group B: USA, England, Wales, Iran
- Group C: Saudi Arabia, Argentina, Poland, Mexico
- Group D: Denmark, Australia, France, Tunisia
- Group E: Japan, Costa Rica, Spain, Germany
- Group F: Morocco, Croatia, Canada, Belgium,
- Group G: Cameroon, Serbia, Brazil, Switzerland
- Group H: South Korea, Uruguay, Portugal, Ghana
Enjoy FIFA world cup 2022
All matches from the FIFA World Cup will be shown on Sports18. As an alternative, Jio Cinema will also offer free streaming of the games.
Timing of the matches
The first two rounds of competition will begin at 1, 4, 7, and 10 o’clock local time (10, 1, 4 and 7 pm in the UK). Matches in the knockout round and the last round of the group stage will begin at 6 p.m. and 10 p.m. local time, respectively (3 and 7 pm UK time). The championship match is set to begin at 6 p.m. local time (3 pm UK time).
Venues of the matches
- Education City Stadium
- Khalifa International Stadium
- Al Bayt Stadium
- Al Thumama Stadium
- Lusail Stadium
- Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium
- Ras Abu Aboud Stadium and
- Al Janoub Stadium will host the group games.
Unique factors in Qatar FIFA World Cup 2022
Apart from its predecessor, the 2022 World Cup would be held in the winter because the temperature in Qatar during summer is too harsh for football. The event will be held in Asia for the second time and the first time in the Middle East.
The international football event will occur in the middle of the league football season. Concerns have been raised in the football world about how this would affect the freshness that the players traditionally came to the summit event when it was held at the end of football season. Italy’s failure to qualify for the tournament for the first time in its history made for quite the headline on the field.
Especially when they were crowned undefeated European Champions less than one year ago. It might be the final dance on the big stage for the two most renowned names in football history, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. The tournament has been tainted off the field even before any ball is kicked. Qatar’s hosts have come under fire for several human rights breaches, including their treatment of the LGBTQ population.
It all came to a head during the last FIFA Congress in Qatar, second in the World Cup draw, when Lise Klaveness, the Norwegian FA’s first female president in its 120-year history, addressed on stage the difficulties that surrounded the host nation and the event.
About FIFA
The goal of FIFA is to organise and promote football globally. The organisation has been quickly changing since 2016 to become a group that can best serve the game for the good of everyone around the world. The new FIFA is modernising football in every manner to make it more inclusive, accessible, and widespread. Not just a few continents but the entire planet.
To make football international, they will work to ensure that a minimum of 50 national sides and 50 clubs from every continent can compete at the highest level.
