format of the competition, qualified teams, favorites… The complete guide to the World Cup in Qatar

For the first time in its history, the World Cup is coming to winter. From November 20 to December 18, the 32 qualified countries will meet in Qatar for the big explanation. Nearly a month of fierce struggles with the aim of hanging a star above the national crest, and lifting the mythical gold cup.

What is the format of the competition and which nations qualify?

We are not changing – for the moment – a formula as proven as that of the World Cup. Eight groups of four teams, named from the letter A to H, make up the first phase of the competition.

Group A: Qatar, Ecuador, Senegal, Netherlands
Group B: England, Iran, United States, Wales
Group C: Argentina, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Poland
Group D: France, Australia, Denmark, Tunisia
Group E: Spain, Costa Rica, Germany, Japan
Group F: Belgium, Canada, Morocco, Croatia
Group G: Brazil, Serbia, Switzerland, Cameroon
Group H: Portugal, Ghana, Uruguay, South Korea

The first two of each group qualify for the round of 16 (December 3-6), before continuing with the quarter-finals (December 9-10), the semi-finals (December 13-14), the match for 3rd place ( December 17) and the final (December 18).

In which cities and in which stadiums does the competition take place?

Eight enclosures will be responsible for welcoming players and spectators throughout the event. The Khalifa International Stadium in Doha is the only one to have been built long before the World Cup was awarded to Qatar (1976). The emirate’s capital is also home to 974 Stadium – which will be dismantled after the tournament – and Al-Thumama Stadium.

Four other cities were also selected: Al-Khor, Al-Rayyan, Al-Wakrah and Lusail. It is in the latter that the grand finale will be held, offering the largest capacity (80 000 seats) of the existing enclosures.

What time and on which channels to watch the 2022 World Cup?

64 meetings in less than a month. Football enthusiasts will be served, with matches contested over five time slots: 11 a.m., 2 p.m., 4 p.m., 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. It remains to be seen on which channels they will be able to quench their thirst for football.

As in the two previous editions of the World Cup, two broadcasters will be responsible for broadcasting the matches live in France: TF1 and beIN Sports. With the difference that the channel created in 2012 will be the only one to offer the entire competition on its channel, when “La Une” will broadcast 28 matches throughout the World Cup, including the opening match, the three Blues in the group stage, five round of 16, three quarter-finals, the two semi-finals, the match for 3rd place and the final.

What are the matches not to miss?

Several enticing encounters are on the program, and this from the start of the World Cup. Monday, November 21, Senegal, winner of the 2022 African Cup of Nations, challenges the Netherlands in an already very important confrontation in group A. To follow closely of course, the entry into the running of the Blues against Australia on November 22. However, to witness the big shock of this group stage, you will have to wait a bit, until Sunday, November 27 with a duel at the top between Spain and Germany.

Here is a non-exhaustive selection of the beautiful posters of this group stage:

Monday, November 21: Senegal-Netherlands (5 p.m.)
Tuesday, November 22: France-Australia (20 hours)
Saturday November 26: France-Denmark (5 p.m.)
Sunday, November 27: Spain-Germany (20 hours)
Monday, November 28: Brazil-Switzerland (5 p.m.)
Monday, November 28: Portugal-Uruguay (20 hours)
Wednesday, November 30: Tunisia-France (16 hours)
Thursday, December 1: Croatia-Belgium (4 p.m.)

Who has the favor of predictions?

According to the bookmakers, a favorite emerges before the start of this 2022 edition: Brazil. 20 years after its coronation in Korea and Japan, the Seleçao acts as the main contender for the supreme title. Behind, we find elbow to elbow the South American rival, Argentina, and the reigning world champions, the France team.

A little behind, the finalist of the last Euro, England, as well as the Spanish 2010 world champions, intend to thwart the predictions. Last member of the top 6, Germany, who triumphed in 2014 and will be in the same group as La Roja for a first shock at the top.

The novelty of semi-automatic offside

Already used since this season in the Champions League, the semi-automatic offside will make its debut in a World Cup. What does it consist of ? To be brief, it facilitates the detection of offside – thanks to 3D modeling in wide shots, diagonally and in close shots – without however replacing the assessment of the refereeing body.

Officials in charge of video assistance receive an alert each time the ball is received by an attacker who is in an offside position at the time of the pass. Then task these video referees to check if there is indeed offside, hence the semi-automatic mention, before referring to the central referee.