This Friday in Doha, Qatar, the FIFA 2022 World Cup draw will take place. It will be the first time the 32-team field has learned what they will face in November and December when the world’s largest soccer tournament descends on the Middle East.
Before the eight groups of four teams each are determined, here is a breakdown of important information to know ahead of time.
How to keep track of the draw
When: Friday, April 1st, 12 p.m. Eastern Time
Telemundo and FS1 are good places to start.
What is the procedure for drawing?
All 32 teams will be divided into four pots based on the FIFA World Rankings, which were released on March 31 and will take into consideration the most recent round of qualifiers.
Qatar will be placed in Pot 1 alongside the top seven seeds and will be assigned to Group A, which will include the host nation. Following that, eight groups of four teams will be formed, with one team being drawn from each of the four pots (pots 1 through 4).
Except for UEFA, all of the groups – A through H – are allowed to have more than one representative from each region. The maximum number of European teams allowed in a single group is two.
Who has met the requirements?
In addition to the host nation, Qatar will automatically qualify, and the remaining 29 teams will qualify through their respective federation routes. They are listed in the following order:
EUFA (Europe) consists of the following countries: Belgium; Croatia; Denmark; England; France; Germany; the Netherlands; Poland; Portugal; Serbia; Spain; Switzerland.
Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, and Uruguay are members of Conmebol (South America).
Cameroon, Ghana, Morocco, Senegal, and Tunisia are members of the CAF (Africa).
Iran, Japan, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, and Taiwan are members of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). Qatar
Canada is a member of the Concacaf (North America/Caribbean) confederation.
As of Wednesday evening, the United States, Mexico, or Costa Rica will compete for the Concacaf’s final two spots, which will be decided by a vote.
Wales will play either Scotland or Ukraine in a UEFA qualifying match in June, and the final UEFA qualifying spot will be decided then. That is the path to take. Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the construction of a route was put on hold.
The final two teams will be determined in Qatar this June through a series of playoffs. The names of these are as follows:
The winner of the AFC Fourth Round (either Australia or the United Arab Emirates) will face the fifth-placed team from Conmebol (Peru)
Fourth place in the Concacaf Third Round (to be determined) vs. the winner of the Oceania tournament (New Zealand or Solomon Islands)
When is the World Cup taking place?
Instead of taking place during the summer, the quadrennial event will take place during the months of November and December. The World Cup will be held in eight stadiums across five cities in Qatar in 2022.
The following is a breakdown of the schedule:
Group stage: from November 21 to December 2 Round of 16: from December 2 to November 21 3rd to 6th of December
The quarterfinals will be held on December 9-10.
Semifinals will be held on December 13-14.
The 17th of December is in third place.
The deadline is December 18th.
What effect does it have on the Major League Soccer schedule?
The Major League Soccer regular season began earlier than ever before on February 26 in order to best align with the international soccer calendar for the year 2022. Until Decision Day, the regular-season finale on Oct. 9, the show will be running.
Following three weeks of Audi 2022 MLS Cup Playoffs action, the MLS Cup will be played on Nov. 5, more than two weeks before the start of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar on Nov. 21 and more than a week before the player release date on Nov. 14. The MLS Cup will be played on Nov. 5, more than two weeks before the start of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar on Nov. 21 and more than a week before the player release date on Nov. 14.
While many leagues around the world are taking a break during the World Cup’s winter break, the Major League Soccer schedule’s cadence fits in rather seamlessly with the tournament’s structure.
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