FIFA World Cup 2022: All You Need To Know

A brief summary of the things to know about the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, occurring in November and December 2022.

New Delhi: A tournament claimed by the organizers to be “the best tournament ever”, controversies have followed it around ever since FIFA’s contentious decision to host it in Qatar. Despite this, it promises to be a World Cup of changes, of uniqueness, of unpredictability, and surely feature high quality football for fans to follow, as they cheer their team on, and their heroes strive for glory. A World Cup can be considered the pinnacle of football, and everyone will be dreaming it will be their team lifting the iconic trophy over their heads.

As Qatar is mainly desert, the climate in summer is unsuited for such high-intensity sport. With temperatures potentially rising up to 45°C, it was obvious that there would be a scheduling change, which was the case. For the first time in the tournament’s rich 92-year history, it will be played in winter, from 21st November to 18th December, to veer around the issue of heat. At this time, the temperature will likely be no higher than 30°C, based on studies from the average temperatures in Doha from 1991-2020. This is obviously a more suitable temperature for football.

Qatar was definitely underequipped for a sporting event of this magnitude, as they have built seven new stadiums, along with a new airport, new roads, and a new Metro. This has unfortunately led to over 6,500 worker deaths since the announcement of the tournament being held in Qatar, mainly migrant workers from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Sri Lanka. So far, Qatar have failed to address or investigate these issues in detail, simply stating “natural causes” such as heart attacks or respiratory failures were the reason for these deaths, a claim met by skepticism from numerous experts.

Qatar have also run out of affordable hotels for visiting fans, leading to the requirement to commission tents without air conditioning on the desert plains for $200 (₹15,611) a night.

In terms of football, host nation Qatar are the only team making their debut appearance this tournament. However, Canada will return to the tournament after qualifying for the second time in history, and for the first time in 36 years.

The groups to look out for are surely Group E (Spain, Costa Rica, Germany, Japan) and Group H (Portugal, Ghana, Uruguay, Korea Republic), which have the likeliest chance of going down to the wire. Current champions France (in Group D) will surely be looking to break the “Champions Curse” and not be eliminated in the Group Stage.

In what is likely to be the last World Cup for the legendary Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, the earliest place the two can face each other would be the semi-final due to their respective country’s groups. If Argentina and Portugal finish in different spots in their groups, they might face off in a semi final. However, if both finish in the same spot in their group, the earliest the icons could meet would be the final, in a match that would surely bring the world to a standstill.

All in all, this tournament is likely to be unique in its own regard, with new overachievers, underperformers, and potentially new champions. It will surely be a tournament football fans will be looking forward to.

Written By Purv Ashar