FIFA World Cup 2022 Qualifiers: Ronaldo, Salah and Lewandowski all in race for Qatar
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The 2022 FIFA World Cup will be the first World Cup in the Middle East and the last one with 32 countries, with FIFA planning to expand the tournament to 48 nations from 2026.
When is the World Cup draw?
The FIFA World Cup draw is scheduled to happen on April 1 and by then, 29 of the 32 participating countries will already be decided with the playoffs and qualifiers in the upcoming couple of days.
The two inter-confederation playoffs, scheduled in June and the match between Wales and the winner of Scotland vs Ukraine will be the ones determining the final spots of the World Cup later.
Which teams have qualified for the World Cup?
Belgium, Brazil, France, Argentina, England, Spain, Denmark, Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, Croatia, Uruguay, Iran, Japan, Serbia, South Korea, Canada, Ecuador, Qatar, Saudi Arabia have all earned automatic qualifications in the World Cup so far.
World Cup Qualifications in detail:
1. Europe – UEFA
How many slots does UEFA have for the World Cup?
Europe has 13 slots for the 2022 World Cup. Ten teams have already qualified with the remaining three decided through playoffs.
Who all have qualified?
Serbia, Spain, Switzerland, France, Belgium, Denmark, Netherlands, Croatia, England and Germany have topped their respective UEFA Qualification group stages to earn automatic qualification.
Only one of Robert Lewandowski and Zlatan Ibrahimovic will seal a place for the Qatar 2022 World Cup as Poland faces Sweden in the qualifying knockouts. (Photo File) – REUTERS
When are the matches?
The matches will be played on March 30 and will have a 12:15 am kick-off IST.
The third qualifier between Wales and the winner of Scotland vs Ukraine will be decided on a later date, with the Scotland-Ukraine postponed after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
- Poland vs Sweden
- Portugal vs North Macedonia
- Wales vs (Winner of Scotland vs Ukraine) – postponed
2. Africa – CAF
How many slots does UEFA have for the World Cup?
Africa has five slots for the 2022 World Cup. Five teams will muscle out their automatic qualifications in the playoffs.
Who all have qualified?
No team has qualified from Africa for the 2022 Qatar World Cup so far, with ten teams – the topper from each group in the second round – were selected for the third round play-offs.
Mohamed Salah will face his club teammate Sadio Mane when Egypt plays Senegal in the return leg for the qualifying knockouts. – REUTERS
Which teams can qualify?
Egypt, Senegal, Cameroon, Algeria, Ghana, Nigeria, Democratic Republic of Congo, Morocco, Mali and Tunisia are all in contention for World Cup spotswith the third round playoffs being two-legged ties.
RELATED | Salah’s turn as Egypt beats Senegal in 1st leg of WC playoff
When are the matches?
The third round playoffs have already had the first legs played and will have the second legs played on March 29 and March 30 respectively.
March 29 matches: 10:30 pm kick-off (IST)
- Nigeria vs Ghana
- Senegal vs Egypt
March 30 matches: 1 am kick-off (IST)
- Algeria vs Cameroon
- Morocco vs DR Congo
- Tunisia vs Mali
3. Asia – AFC
How many slots does AFC have for the World Cup?
Asia has 4.5 slots for the 2022 World Cup. Four teams have already qualified with the remaining half to decide its fate through inter-confederation playoffs.
Who all have qualified?
South Korea, Iran, Japan and Saudi Arabia have bagged the top two places of their respective groups in the third round of AFC Qualifiers to earn automatic qualification into the Qatar World Cup.
RELATED | Iran becomes the first Asian country to Qualify for FIFA World Cup 2022
Which other team can qualify?
The fourth round will see Australia playing the third placed team in Group A of the AFC Qualification group – which can be either UAE, Iraq or Lebanon.
The winner of the fourth round will play the fifth-placed team in the World Cup Qualifiers of CONMEBOL, with the winner of this fixture sealing a spot for Qatar.
When are the matches?
The remaining round 3 fixtures to decide Australia’s opponent in the fourth round will take place on March 30.
Round 3 fixtures (all timings in IST)
- Iran vs. Lebanon – 5 p.m.
- Syria vs. Iraq – 7:15 p.m.
- UAE vs South Korea – 7:15 p.m.
Round 4 match – Australia vs Round 3 winner (UAE / Iraq / Lebanon) – June 7
Inter-confederation playoffs – June 13 or 14
4. South America – CONMEBOL
How many slots does CONMEBOL have for the World Cup?
South America has 4.5 slots for the 2022 World Cup. Four teams have already qualified with the remaining half to decide its fate through inter-confederation playoffs.
Argentina and Brazil have earned automatic qualifications with their brilliant runs in the group stages, with Uruguay and Colombia following them. (Photo File) – REUTERS
Who all have qualified?
Brazil and Argentina gained initial qualifications, with Ecuador and Uruguay joining them in the automatic qualification spots last week.
Which other team can qualify?
Three countries – Peru, Chile and Colombia – remain in the race for the fifth spot, with the one with the maximum points set to face the round 4 winner from Asia for a World Cup spot.
When are the matches?
The final round of matches will have all three in action on March 30 and all matches have a 5:00 am kick-off (IST).
- Peru vs Paraguay
- Chile vs Uruguay
- Venezuela vs Colombia
5. North America – CONCACAF
How many slots does CONCACAF have for the World Cup?
North America has 3.5 slots for the 2022 World Cup. One team has already qualified with the remaining to be decided through the final round of matches as well as the half to be decided through inter-confederation playoffs.
Who all have qualified?
Canada made history when it made the cut for the 2022 Qatar World Cup, qualifying for the first time since 1986 (from that region).
The Canadian National Team celebrates after beating Jamaica as the team qualified for the world cup after 36 years. – REUTERS
Which other teams can qualify?
Three teams, the United States of America (USA), Mexico and Costa Rica, remain in contention for automatic qualification.
Two of the three with the greatest points would qualify and the third would play the winner of the qualifier from Oceania in the inter-confederation playoff.
RELATED | Canada beats Jamaica to end 36-year World Cup finals drought
When are the matches?
The final round of matches will have all three in action March 31 and both matches have a 6:35 am kick-off (IST)
- Costa Rica vs USA
- Mexico vs El Salvador
6. Oceania – OCF
Which team can qualify?
New Zealand and Solomon Islands will play out the Oceania final for a place in the inter-confederation playoffs against the fourth-placed side from CONCACAF. The winner of this playoff will qualify for the World Cup.
When is the match?
The Oceania final will be played on March 30 with a 10:30 pm kick-off (IST)
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