WORLD CUP. Preparation for the 2022 World Cup has entered its final stretch with the draw organized in Qatar, this Friday, April 1, 2022. All the groups for this World Cup are known. First date to remember: the match Qatar – Ecuador, opening, November 21…
[Mis à jour le 1er avril 2022 à 20h59] The 2022 World Cup draw took place in Doha, Qatar, this Friday, April 1, 2022 (read the draw summary). The stars of world football and the great leaders of Fifa and the small emirate marched in a ceremony supposed to promote this first World Cup in an Arab country. The event above all lifted the veil on the competition groups.
The groups for this 2022 World Cup are all or almost all made up (see all groups below). Among the meetings to follow, Qatar will face Ecuador in the opening match on November 21, 2022, in group A. A United States – Iran should take place under high diplomatic tensions in group B, which also features the England. Argentina and Mexico seem favorites in Group C. France is in the group D and face Denmark there in a match that will hopefully make up for the lackluster 2018 encounter in Russia. It will be preceded or followed by a France – Tunisia which promises to be very hot.
A Spain – Germany, the summit of European football, will take place in group E, where Japan could still create a surprise. Belgium, Croatia and Morocco could make the suspense last in Group F. In Group G, Brazil seem a step above, but will have to be wary of Serbia who beat Portugal in qualifying, Switzerland who fell from France at the last Euro, and Cameroon winner of Algeria in the play-off. Portugal, finally, appears as utra-favorite in group H.
The draw for the 2022 World Cup determined all the groups for the group stage and a first sketch of the schedule for this World Cup with the poster for the opening match, Qatar – Ecuador. Here are all the groups resulting from this draw:
- Group A : Qatar, Netherlands, Senegal, Ecuador
- Group B : England, United States, Iran, + the winner of the Wales-Scotland-Ukraine play-offs
- Group C : Argentina, Mexico, Poland, Saudi Arabia
- Group D : France, Denmark, Tunisia + the winner of the United Arab Emirates-Australia play-offs, then Peru
- Group E : Spain, Germany, Japan + the winner of the Costa Rica-New Zealand play-offs
- Group F : Belgium, Croatia, Morocco, Canada
- Group G : Brazil, Switzerland, Serbia, Cameroon
- Group H : Portugal, Uruguay, South Korea, Ghana
Read also
A total of 32 teams, including 13 from Europe, will participate in the 2022 World Cup. With Qatar already assured of its participation as the host country, 31 other countries had to go through qualifiers to qualify. If most of the competitors are known, on April 1, there are still three tickets to distribute. Here are the countries already guaranteed to participate in the competition:
- Qatar (host country)
- Germany
- Denmark
- Brazil
- France
- Belgium
- Serbia
- Spain
- Croatia
- Swiss
- England
- Netherlands
- Argentina
- Iran
- South Korea
- Japan
- Saudi Arabia
- Ecuador
- Uruguay
- Canada
- Morocco
- Tunisia
- Ghana
- Senegal
- Portugal
- Cameroon
- United States
- Mexico
Three more missing in World Cup groups
At present, this 2022 World Cup has 29 qualified competitors out of 32. The last three tickets will be distributed during the month of June. The first will concern Europe. Due to the war between Russia and Ukraine, the barrage between the Ukrainians and the Scots has indeed been shifted. The winner of the duel will face Wales, already qualified for the play-off final after their victory against Austria.
The other two tickets for this 2022 World Cup will concern the intercontinental finals. Australia, opponent of the Blues in 2018, will first play a pre-dam against the United Arab Emirates. The winner will face Peru, 5th in the South American zone, in June. New Zealand will try to qualify for the World Cup against Costa Rica.
A few major nations will be missing, but have failed to qualify: the reigning European champion, Italy, but also Mohamed Salah’s Egypt, Riyad Mahrez’s Algeria and Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s Sweden.
To cope with these climatic constraints, FIFA has indeed decided to organize this World Cup in winter, for the first time in its history. The date of the opening match, Qatar – Ecuador, has thus been set for November 21, 2022while the grand finale will take place on December 18, 2022Qatar National Day.
The group stage of the 2022 World Cup will take place from November 21 to December 2. The first two of each group will qualify for the round of 16, scheduled for December 3, 4, 5 and 6. It will then be time for the quarter-finals, scheduled for December 9 and 10, then the semi-finals, on December 13 and 14. The match for third place will take place on December 17 and the final on Sunday December 18, one week before Christmas. Here is the schedule for the group phase:
November 21, 2022
- 11 a.m.: Qatar – Ecuador (GROUP A)
- 2 p.m.: England – Iran (GROUP B)
- 5 p.m.: Senegal – Netherlands (GROUP A)
- 8 p.m.: United States – Wales/Scotland/Ukraine (GROUP B)
November 22, 2022
- 11 a.m.: Denmark – Tunisia (GROUP D)
- 2 p.m.: France – United Arab Emirates/Australia/Peru (GROUP D)
- 5 p.m.: Mexico – Poland (GROUP C)
- 8 p.m.: Argentina – Saudi Arabia (GROUP C)
November 23, 2022
- 11 a.m.: Morocco – Croatia (GROUP F)
- 2 p.m.: Belgium – Croatia (GROUP F)
- 5 p.m.: Germany – Japan (GROUP E)
- 8 p.m.: Spain – Costa Rica/New Zealand (GROUP E)
November 24, 2022
- 11 a.m.: Uruguay – South Korea (GROUP H)
- 2 p.m.: Portugal – Ghana (GROUP H)
- 5 p.m.: Switzerland – Cameroon (GROUP G)
- 8 p.m.: Brazil – Serbia (GROUP G)
November 25, 2022
- 11 a.m.: Netherlands – Ecuador (GROUP A)
- 2 p.m.: Qatar – Senegal (GROUP A)
- 5 p.m.: Wales/Scotland/Ukraine – Iran (GROUP B)
- 8 p.m.: England – USA (GROUP B)
November 26, 2022
- 11 a.m.: Poland – Saudi Arabia (GROUP C)
- 2 p.m.: Argentina – Mexico (GROUP C)
- 5 p.m.: Tunisia – United Arab Emirates / Australia / Peru (GROUP D)
- 8 p.m.: France – Denmark (GROUP D)
November 27, 2022
- 11 a.m. Japan – Costa Rica/New Zealand: (GROUP E)
- 2 p.m.: Spain – Germany (GROUP E)
- 5 p.m.: Croatia – Canada (GROUP F)
- 8 p.m.: Belgium – Morocco (GROUP F)
November 28, 2022
- 11 a.m.: Cameroon – Serbia (GROUP G)
- 2 p.m.: Brazil – Switzerland (GROUP G)
- 5 p.m.: South Korea – Ghana (GROUP H)
- 8 p.m.: Portugal – Uruguay (GROUP H)
November 29, 2022
- 4 p.m.: Wales/Scotland/Ukraine – England and Iran-United States (GROUP B)
- 8 p.m.: Netherlands – Qatar and Ecuador – Senegal (GROUP A)
November 30, 2022
- 6 p.m.: Tunisia – France and United Arab Emirates/Australia/Peru – Denmark (GROUP D)
- 8 p.m.: Poland – Argentina and Saudi Arabia – Mexico (GROUP C)
1st December
- 4 p.m.: Croatia – Belgium and Canada – Morocco (GROUP F)
- 8 p.m.: Japan – Spain and Costa Rica/New Zealand – Germany (GROUP E)
December 2, 2022
- 4 p.m.: South Korea – Portugal and Ghana – Uruguay (GROUP H)
- 8 p.m.: Cameroon – Brazil and Serbia Switzerland (GROUP G)
Latest news around the 2022 World Cup
It was in December 2010 that Qatar was named host country of this World Cup, being preferred to the four other candidates: Australia, Japan, South Korea and the United States. A controversial choice which has continued, over the years, to give rise to controversy against a backdrop of accusations of corruption at the time of appointment, of slavery on the construction sites of the stadiums, and on the climate of the country. Given the high heat recorded in summer (the period when the competition is usually played), sometimes with peaks of 50°C, this 2022 World Cup has also had to be postponed to new dates, in winter.
The draw ceremony for the World Cup, in Doha, Qatar, on April 1, was the opportunity to unveil the mascot for this 2022 World Cup. It is called “La’eeb” and is presented on the FIFA website as an “indescribable mascot” that “everyone is invited to interpret”. Wearing the traditional Bedouin headdress and displaying a little air of Casper the ghost much commented on on social networks, this mascot has a name that could be translated as “super-qualified player”.
“La’eeb encourages everyone to believe in themselves” and “will bring the joy of football to everyone”, assure the organizers. “We’re sure fans around the world will love this fun and playful character. La’eeb will play a vital role as we engage fans young and old in the FIFA World Cup experience at Qatar”, assured Khalid Ali Al Mawlawi, director of communication of this World Cup. Here are the first images unveiled by Qatar and Fifa:
Getting a ticket to see the 2022 World Cup will not be easy. On its website, Fifa explains that “payments for tickets allocated during the first sales period with random selection procedure (draw), which ended on February 8, 2022, are no longer accepted. Supporters have again had the opportunity to apply for tickets for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™ between March 23 and March 29, 2022. The next phase of sales will open on April 5, 2022, once the draw for the first known turn.
Some 1.2 million visitors are expected for this first World Cup in an Arab country. More than 800,000 tickets were purchased in the first phase of sales, Fifa announced. Seventeen million had been requested between January 19 and February 8, but there will only be a little more than three million available (two million for sale and one reserved for Fifa and its partners).