⚽ FIFA World Cup 2022: Tournament Discussion Thread for Qatar 2022

[JollyGood]

I read what you wrote about Wales but if they win the play-off it will be a fascinating group. Imagine Group B will be: England, Iran, USA and one of Wales/Scotland/Ukraine

Imagine, not only will England vs USA take place but England vs Iran and also Iran vs USA will be in the same group. Sports meets politics with all the history between them 

I actually like the group US got into.  Be nice if Wales doesn't make it they are a pretty strong club.  No matter the bracket US will always struggle to escape from the group stages.  They are getting better but no where close to competing at the highest level.  I'm sure englad was happy to see the US squad in their bracket

[uneng]

Very juicy odds are given by bookmakers on Canada's win against Panama - 2.1... I think I can take this chance! I think Canada will win without any problems... The second interesting match is Costa Rica vs USA. The odds are 2.25 to win the USA... Of course I'm not sure if the USA is the clear favorite here, but I'll try to place a multi bet on the win of Canada and the USA...

...

My guesses would be
Panama vs Canada: draw @3.0
Costa Rica vs USA: win USA @2.15

I just realized above post was in the wrong thread (UEFA qualifiers), so I'll continue here instead

Ok, so that was a disaster. 
Panama beat Canada 1-0 and Costa Rica beat the USA 2-0. Also Mexico won, but as expected the final ranking was not affected at all.

Canada, Mexico and the USA are qualified, then in June Costa Rica will play New Zealand for one of the last remaining spots. Costa Rica will be the favorite here, New Zealand is a relatively weak team.

I actually like the group US got into.  Be nice if Wales doesn't make it they are a pretty strong club.  No matter the bracket US will always struggle to escape from the group stages.  They are getting better but no where close to competing at the highest level.  I'm sure englad was happy to see the US squad in their bracket

I think USA had a very impressive performance on qualifiers stage side by side with Canada, and were lucky by entering this group, which gives them total conditions to pass next phase with England, the favorite one from the group.

Opposite to olympic games, world cup is always a big challenge for US since the first stage, but I hope they are able to make it till quarter finals this time (or maybe Canada which can also represent north america on the competition)...

[JollyGood]

I am not so confident that the USA will go through to the next round alongside England from Group B. Any one of three UEFA team that are fighting for the final spot (Wales, Scotland and Ukraine) could qualify alongside England... and on a one-to-one match all three are capable of beating the USA.

It is obvious England are favourites to win the group but at the very least they should finish as runners-up if things go wrong. I am aware the USA needs to do well in the tournament to give the MLS another big boost to elevate soccer as the top sport in the USA so to that point I really want the USA to do well but I think England will qualify past the group stages with one of Wales, Scotland or Ukraine.

I think USA had a very impressive performance on qualifiers stage side by side with Canada, and were lucky by entering this group, which gives them total conditions to pass next phase with England, the favorite one from the group.

Opposite to olympic games, world cup is always a big challenge for US since the first stage, but I hope they are able to make it till quarter finals this time (or maybe Canada which can also represent north america on the competition)...

[JollyGood]

Of the African teams that qualified I think Senegal in Group A, Tunisia in Group D, Morocco in Group F, Cameroon in Group G and Ghana in Group H ALL FIVE have a good chance to go through as runners-up in their groups. Senegal, Morocco, Cameroon and Ghana seem to have the easier chance than Tunisia but it will be great for African football to see the teams play in the world cup in Qatar.

Representative’s of African countries to Qatar:

Cameroon🇨🇲
Ghana🇬🇭
Morocco🇲🇦
Senegal🇸🇳
Tunisia🇹🇳

This five teams had to pass through very competitive matches before reaching the final stage. It’s sad we won’t  be seeing teams like Ivory Coast, Egypt, Nigeria and Algeria in the World Cup in Qatar. A battle well fought for by the qualified African teams.

The good news is that Africa has an additional 4 spots during the next world cup.

[romero121]

I want to make a wish here may the south Asian teams make to the tournament as well. Mostly the European teams makes their way to the tournament - I hope to see some new teams making their way to the top five.

South Asian teams constitute Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Pakistan, Nepal, and Sri Lanka. This time no team among this enter the 32 teams. Already 29 teams have been qualified and the remaining 3 will be selected by june. Atleast few Asian teams Iran, Saudi Arabia, Japan, South Korea and the host team Qatar.

[JollyGood]

If India, Bangladesh or Pakistan had qualified they would have had huge amounts of supporters watching the games on television in those countries but only a certain number of teams can qualify from each region but still Iran will be joined in Group B by England and the USA as well as one of Wales, Scotland or Ukraine.

The fact there are deep political differences between Iran on one side and England and the USA on the other - this will make the England vs Iran game and Iran vs USA game a must watch 

I want to make a wish here may the south Asian teams make to the tournament as well. Mostly the European teams makes their way to the tournament - I hope to see some new teams making their way to the top five.

South Asian teams constitute Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Pakistan, Nepal, and Sri Lanka. This time no team among this enter the 32 teams. Already 29 teams have been qualified and the remaining 3 will be selected by june. Atleast few Asian teams Iran, Saudi Arabia, Japan, South Korea and the host team Qatar.

[South Park]

I read what you wrote about Wales but if they win the play-off it will be a fascinating group. Imagine Group B will be: England, Iran, USA and one of Wales/Scotland/Ukraine

Imagine, not only will England vs USA take place but England vs Iran and also Iran vs USA will be in the same group. Sports meets politics with all the history between them 

From a political perspective that group is completely crazy, and if I remember correctly Scotland is still looking for their independence so that would add to the political quagmire of that group, but I think the team that most people would like to qualify to the world cup due to everything that is happening right now is Ukraine, still despite all of that I do not think there will ever be a match as intense as the one we saw at the 1986 world cup in the quarterfinals of the tournament when Argentina defeated England with two of the most famous goals ever scored.

[JollyGood]

I forgot about that... 

Yes the Scottish First Minister and her SNP party are still trying to get the powers in Westminster to allow another referendum in Scotland which would have a simple "Yes" and "No" vote at ballot box.

Adding England vs Scotland as well as England vs Iran and of course Iran vs USA all in Group B makes it one of the most politically charged world cup group stages ever !

I read what you wrote about Wales but if they win the play-off it will be a fascinating group. Imagine Group B will be: England, Iran, USA and one of Wales/Scotland/Ukraine

Imagine, not only will England vs USA take place but England vs Iran and also Iran vs USA will be in the same group. Sports meets politics with all the history between them 

From a political perspective that group is completely crazy, and if I remember correctly Scotland is still looking for their independence so that would add to the political quagmire of that group, but I think the team that most people would like to qualify to the world cup due to everything that is happening right now is Ukraine, still despite all of that I do not think there will ever be a match as intense as the one we saw at the 1986 world cup in the quarterfinals of the tournament when Argentina defeated England with two of the most famous goals ever scored.

[nullama]

Groud D already has France, Denmark and Tunisia.

The next one to join it will be either Australia or Peru. We will find out in a few days, but my guess is that Australia will end up winning.

Peru is not a particularly strong team, and in these qualifiers they've not been incredibly good. On the other hand Australia seems to be doing quite well lately, and I'm sure they're going to secure their spot at the world cup.

It will be a close match though, but as I said I think Australia has a slight advantage and will end up winning.

[Sithara007]

Groud D already has France, Denmark and Tunisia.

The next one to join it will be either Australia or Peru. We will find out in a few days, but my guess is that Australia will end up winning.

Peru is not a particularly strong team, and in these qualifiers they've not been incredibly good. On the other hand Australia seems to be doing quite well lately, and I'm sure they're going to secure their spot at the world cup.

It will be a close match though, but as I said I think Australia has a slight advantage and will end up winning.

Never write off any of the CONMEBOL teams. Even the weakest teams in that confederation, such as Bolivia and Venezuela are capable of defeating the strongest teams in CAF and AFC. Now I regard Australia as one of the strongest teams in AFC, but still I would go for Peru if they face each other. Anyway, we need to wait one more week to find out which team is going to qualify for Qatar 2022. Also, there is one more playoff scheduled for next week (CONCACAF v OFC), in which Costa Rica will take on New Zealand.

[nullama]

~snip~
Never write off any of the CONMEBOL teams. Even the weakest teams in that confederation, such as Bolivia and Venezuela are capable of defeating the strongest teams in CAF and AFC. Now I regard Australia as one of the strongest teams in AFC, but still I would go for Peru if they face each other. Anyway, we need to wait one more week to find out which team is going to qualify for Qatar 2022. Also, there is one more playoff scheduled for next week (CONCACAF v OFC), in which Costa Rica will take on New Zealand.

Absolutely right, CONMEBOL should have at least one extra slot in my view, 4.5 is just too few as basically all the teams there are good enough to qualify, and two of them are always qualifying: Brazil, and Argentina, which are both still undefeated. This basically reduces the slots for the rest of the teams and makes it extremely competitive.

Costa Rica vs New Zealand will be an interesting match, the all whites should be able to win there.

So, overall, my guess is that Oceania (Australia, New Zealand) will go to the world cup.

[JollyGood]

As we get nearer to the actual competition taking place at the end of the year, I will start updating this thread more.

[Sithara007]

Absolutely right, CONMEBOL should have at least one extra slot in my view, 4.5 is just too few as basically all the teams there are good enough to qualify, and two of them are always qualifying: Brazil, and Argentina, which are both still undefeated. This basically reduces the slots for the rest of the teams and makes it extremely competitive.

Costa Rica vs New Zealand will be an interesting match, the all whites should be able to win there.

So, overall, my guess is that Oceania (Australia, New Zealand) will go to the world cup.

We had this discussion so many times. My suggestion is to have at least 6 slots for the CONMEBOL confederation instead of the current 4.5. Teams such as Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia and Cameroon will be participating in this edition of the world cup, while strong teams such as Colombia and Chile are unable to secure their qualifications. Now please tell me one thing. Are teams such as Colombia inferior to AFC teams such as Saudi Arabia? Even the lowest ranked CONMEBOL team (Bolivia) plays much better than Saudi Arabia.

[nullama]

~snip~
We had this discussion so many times. My suggestion is to have at least 6 slots for the CONMEBOL confederation instead of the current 4.5. Teams such as Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia and Cameroon will be participating in this edition of the world cup, while strong teams such as Colombia and Chile are unable to secure their qualifications. Now please tell me one thing. Are teams such as Colombia inferior to AFC teams such as Saudi Arabia? Even the lowest ranked CONMEBOL team (Bolivia) plays much better than Saudi Arabia.

And it gets more complicated now. FIFA is investigating Ecuador and potentially kicking them out of the world cup because apparently one of his players is Colombian.

The Chilean federation claims to have proof that Castillo, who plays for Ecuadorian club Barcelona of Guayaquil, was born in Tumaco, Colombia and that the 23-year-old has been using a falsified birth certificate and passport.

After previously announcing that the final ruling on the complaint filed by Chile for improper alignment of Ecuador during the Qatar 2022 Conmebol Qualifiers would be announced on June 14, FIFA announced that this event would be brought forward to June 10.

How Chile could replace Ecuador

If Ecuador’s eight matches in which Castillo played were changed to 3-0 forfeits, Chile would rise from seventh into fourth in the standings, an automatic qualifying position. Castillo played in both matches and Chile came away with just one point out of a possible six.

That would be an incredible qualification for Chile, who ended up seventh in the group!

[coco23]

We had this discussion so many times. My suggestion is to have at least 6 slots for the CONMEBOL confederation instead of the current 4.5. Teams such as Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia and Cameroon will be participating in this edition of the world cup, while strong teams such as Colombia and Chile are unable to secure their qualifications. Now please tell me one thing. Are teams such as Colombia inferior to AFC teams such as Saudi Arabia? Even the lowest ranked CONMEBOL team (Bolivia) plays much better than Saudi Arabia.

But it's also a matter of diversity. The World Cup would be much less appealing if there were 90% European and South American teams only. But I agree that this would be an interesring format if we had a worldwide qualification somehow to guarantee that are only the best teams qualify for the tournament. Maybe the FIFA could have a one time special event (outside of the regular world cup), like the European Nations League (but it should be more appealing that the teams actually care )

[Slow death]

Absolutely right, CONMEBOL should have at least one extra slot in my view, 4.5 is just too few as basically all the teams there are good enough to qualify, and two of them are always qualifying: Brazil, and Argentina, which are both still undefeated. This basically reduces the slots for the rest of the teams and makes it extremely competitive.

Costa Rica vs New Zealand will be an interesting match, the all whites should be able to win there.

So, overall, my guess is that Oceania (Australia, New Zealand) will go to the world cup.

We had this discussion so many times. My suggestion is to have at least 6 slots for the CONMEBOL confederation instead of the current 4.5. Teams such as Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia and Cameroon will be participating in this edition of the world cup, while strong teams such as Colombia and Chile are unable to secure their qualifications. Now please tell me one thing. Are teams such as Colombia inferior to AFC teams such as Saudi Arabia? Even the lowest ranked CONMEBOL team (Bolivia) plays much better than Saudi Arabia.

well in 2026 CONMEBOL will have 6  slots  so they will be fine, while in africa we continue to be discriminated  and humiliated as if in africa they are only participating because as the name says: " world cup " so all continents need to be represented. it makes no sense that:

the European continent has 16  slots

entire American continent (South America, North America, Central America and the Caribbean) have 12  slots

Asia has 8  slots seats

but Africa, which is a very big continent, only has 9  slots

FIFA should have placed at least 12  slots for Africa, but in the end these changes will only be seen in 2026, there are still many years to go

[nullama]

~snip~

well in 2026 CONMEBOL will have 6  slots  so they will be fine, while in africa we continue to be discriminated  and humiliated as if in africa they are only participating because as the name says: " world cup " so all continents need to be represented. it makes no sense that:

the European continent has 16  slots

entire American continent (South America, North America, Central America and the Caribbean) have 12  slots

Asia has 8  slots seats

but Africa, which is a very big continent, only has 9  slots

FIFA should have placed at least 12  slots for Africa, but in the end these changes will only be seen in 2026, there are still many years to go

Africa has some great talent, many countries there have a great level of soccer.

But I'm not sure which countries in Africa are being left out of the world cup because there are only 9 slots. Maybe I'm missing some. Also, if you look at the history, no African team has yet advanced to the semi-finals, ever: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African_nations_at_the_FIFA_World_Cup

It's not about the size of the continent, it's about how many countries are great at soccer.

For example, you mentioned Europe, which has the largest amount of spots. It's still very common to hear about amazing countries not being able to qualify. For example, Italy, which have won the world cup 4 times in the past, couldn't qualify for the 2022 world cup. So, even though they have a lot of spots, it's still extremely competitive to get one. There are just a lot of great soccer playing countries in Europe. If you look at history, an European country has won the world cup 5 times, and 13 other countries have been in the semi-final: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_nations_at_the_FIFA_World_Cup

Also, the groups for qualifications are not exactly by continents like you mentioned, in particular America is divided into CONCACAF(North America, Central America, and Caribbean) and CONMEBOL(South America) . You can see the historical data of each confederation here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_team_appearances_in_the_FIFA_World_Cup#Results_by_confederation

It's pretty clear that UEFA, and CONMEBOL should have the largest amounts of slots(CONMEBOL currently only has 4.5!), as they just have the best performing countries, proven over the entire history of the tournament. If anything, I would argue those 2 confederations should have more slots.

[Sithara007]

well in 2026 CONMEBOL will have 6  slots  so they will be fine, while in africa we continue to be discriminated  and humiliated as if in africa they are only participating because as the name says: " world cup " so all continents need to be represented. it makes no sense that:

the European continent has 16  slots

entire American continent (South America, North America, Central America and the Caribbean) have 12  slots

Asia has 8  slots seats

but Africa, which is a very big continent, only has 9  slots

FIFA should have placed at least 12  slots for Africa, but in the end these changes will only be seen in 2026, there are still many years to go

In terms of population, Asia is much greater than Africa (you can add in Australia as well, since they are now a part of the AFC). You should be happy that CAF is being given more slots when compared to the AFC, although the population is smaller. The new qualification system is still unfair to teams such as Bolivia and Venezuela in the CONMEBOL, who have hardly any chance of qualifying for the world cup. On the other hand, a lot of weak teams from both Asia and Africa are going to qualify for the main tournament. But I am not going to complain much about it. After all, we need representation from all the continents.

[coco23]

Africa has some great talent, many countries there have a great level of soccer.

But I'm not sure which countries in Africa are being left out of the world cup because there are only 9 slots. Maybe I'm missing some. Also, if you look at the history, no African team has yet advanced to the semi-finals, ever: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African_nations_at_the_FIFA_World_Cup

It's not about the size of the continent, it's about how many countries are great at soccer.

For example, you mentioned Europe, which has the largest amount of spots. It's still very common to hear about amazing countries not being able to qualify. For example, Italy, which have won the world cup 4 times in the past, couldn't qualify for the 2022 world cup. So, even though they have a lot of spots, it's still extremely competitive to get one. There are just a lot of great soccer playing countries in Europe. If you look at history, an European country has won the world cup 5 times, and 13 other countries have been in the semi-final: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_nations_at_the_FIFA_World_Cup

I agree with you, one cannot just look at numbers of countries on an continent or number of population. Of course Asia has much more inhabitants, but the two largest countries India and China are practically not present in the football World. African teams are very passionate, but so far haven't had much success in world cups. You could give them more slots, which of course would increase the chance that a few teams could come further into the tournament, but it wouldn't raise the quality  of the tournament probably.

I would actually favor a more dynamic mode of qualification, where only a few best countries directly qualify per continent (say half of the current numbers) and then the remaining spots are given in intercontinental playoffs or even a small tournament, like a mini B-world cup 

[Swordsoffreedom]

I agree with you, one cannot just look at numbers of countries on an continent or number of population. Of course Asia has much more inhabitants, but the two largest countries India and China are practically not present in the football World. African teams are very passionate, but so far haven't had much success in world cups. You could give them more slots, which of course would increase the chance that a few teams could come further into the tournament, but it wouldn't raise the quality  of the tournament probably.

If we look at the performance of Asian teams against European teams, it is easy to understand that Asian teams are very weak. They are far behind. While teams like Korea and Japan have been able to improve themselves somewhat, they are still much weaker than European or American teams. The European leagues are very advanced. We don't see any better league in Asia than that. More time is needed to improve football in Asia.