The World Cup is arguably the biggest tournament in history, with countries from across the globe fighting for that ultimate win.
Each FIFA World Cup year, there is a host country. The last country to host the big event was Russia. This year’s World Cup will be hosted by Qatar.
Why Qatar
In 2010, Qatar clinched the rights to the World Cup by winning a ballot of Fifa’s 22 executive members. It defeated bids from USA, South Korea, Japan and Australia .
It is the first Arab nation to host the tournament.
Qatar was accused of paying Fifa officials £3m ($3.7m) in bribes to secure their backing but was cleared after a two-year investigation.
Fifa’s then-chairman, Sepp Blatter, supported Qatar’s bid at the time, but has since said Fifa may have made the wrong decision.
Mr Blatter is currently on trial in Switzerland for fraud, embezzlement and other corruption charges.
When Will The Tournament Begin
The tournament, which begins in November, will be the first World Cup to take place in the Middle East and the first at this time of year.
The World Cup finals are being held between 21 November and 18 December – a time when the temperature in Qatar usually reaches 25C (77F).
Had the finals been held in June and July, as they normally are, the matches would have been played in temperatures exceeding 40C and possibly reaching 50C.
Qatar initially proposed to hold the finals during the summer in air-conditioned enclosed stadiums, but the plan was rejected.
Which teams are playing at the World Cup and who are the favourites?
Qualifying for the 2022 World Cup began three years ago.
Teams from different continents played in groups, and the top teams advanced through to the finals, with others qualifying through play-offs.
France, the winners of the 2018 World Cup, made it through but current European champions Italy failed to qualify.
For the finals, the 32 teams were drawn into eight groups of four. Teams from the same continent were kept apart – except for European countries, where a maximum of two could be in any one group.
Brazil, England, France and Spain are the current bookmakers’ favourites to win the tournament
(BBC Sport)
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