The 29 qualified teams will be allocated into four pots based on where they reside in the FIFA Men’s World Ranking. One team from each of the four pots will be drawn into each of the eight groups. As the host nation, Qatar will receive position A1 in Pot 1, where they will be joined by the seven highest-ranked qualified teams.
How is the number of Places in the World Cup determined?
For each World Cup, FIFA decides beforehand the number of places in the finals allocated to each of the zones, based on the numbers and relative strengths of the confederations' teams. The hosts receive automatic berths, and until 2002, so did the defending champions.
How does the FIFA FIFA World Cup work?
Each group plays a round-robin schedule, with no extra time played. Teams earn three points for a win, one point for a draw and no points for a loss and the top two teams in each group advance to a 16-team knockout stage.
How are the pots of the FIFA World Cup determined?
The four pots will be emptied by drawing the eight teams they each contain one by one and placing them in the eight groups of four teams (Groups A to H). Hosts Russia will occupy the top position in Group A, while the seven other seeds will occupy the top spots in Groups B to H.
Should the FIFA World Cup expand to 48 teams?
It’s an idea, just as the World Cup with 40 teams is already on the table with groups of four or five teams. ^ "World Cup could expand to 48 teams, Fifa's Gianni Infantino suggests". The Guardian. 3 October 2016.
How are FIFA World Cup groups decided?
Final tournament The finals draw, held six months before the tournament in the host nation, determines the groups. Eight teams are seeded (including the hosts, with the other teams selected using a formula based on both the FIFA World Rankings and performances in recent World Cups) and drawn to separate groups.
How are World Cup 2022 groups decided?
How did it work? Teams were split into ten groups of five or six (the four teams who reached the 2021 UEFA Nations League finals – Belgium, France, Italy, Spain – were in the smaller groups). The ten group winners qualified for the World Cup. The three remaining World Cup berths were determined via the play-offs.
How do groups work in World Cup?
Each group plays a round-robin tournament, in which each team is scheduled for three matches against other teams in the same group. This means that a total of six matches are played within a group. The last round of matches of each group is scheduled at the same time to preserve fairness among all four teams.
How will the 2022 23 season work?
As of the 2022–23 season, clubs will be able to make five rather than three substitutions. These substitutions can be made in three stoppages during game time, and additionally at half time, in line with rest of the top six European leagues (Bundesliga, Ligue 1, the Primeira Liga, La Liga and Serie A).
How many teams qualify for World Cup from each continent?
In all, 13 teams from Europe qualified for the FIFA World Cup 2022. On the other hand, six teams from Asia, five from Africa, four each from North America and South America made it to the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar.
How do group stages work?
A group stage (also known as pool play or the pool stage) is a round-robin stage in a multi-stage tournament. The competitors are divided into multiple groups, which play separate round-robins in parallel. Measured by a points-based ranking system, the top competitors in each group qualify for the next stage.
How many teams qualify from each World Cup group?
There are three routes, each with four teams featuring a semifinal and a final for a place at the World Cup. The draw was seeded based upon qualifying-round points.
How many groups are in the FIFA World Cup?
Those 40 teams were split into 10 groups of four teams, with the group winners advancing to the final round. This round was due to begin in March 2020 and run through to October 2021 until football was suspended.
How many places are there in the World Cup?
Currently, 32 places are available in the final tournament until 2022. One of them is reserved for the host nation, but if two or more nations co-host the competition, each is awarded a place.
What is the FIFA World Cup qualification?
The FIFA World Cup qualification is the process that a national association football team goes through to qualify for the final tournament of the FIFA World Cup. The qualification reduces the large field of eligible entrants from 211 to just 32 for the finals as of the 2022 edition (to be expanded to 48 from 2026 onwards).
How many teams will be eliminated from the 2023 World Cup?
A total of 24 teams eliminated from World Cup qualification in the second round compete in the third round of 2023 AFC Asian Cup qualification (which is separate from the third round of 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification), where they will be divided into six groups of four teams and compete for the remaining slots of the 2023 AFC Asian Cup.
What are the FIFA qualifying zones?
Qualifying tournaments are held within FIFA 's six continental zones and are organized by their respective confederations: AFC (Asia), CAF (Africa), CONCACAF (North and Central America and the Caribbean), CONMEBOL (South America), OFC (Oceania), and UEFA (Europe). For each World Cup, FIFA decides beforehand the number of places in ...
How many teams are in the first round of FIFA 2020?
The first round will have the remaining 29 teams divided into six groups of five teams.
How many matches are considered first appearances?
Only teams that played at least one match are considered for the purposes of first appearance. Teams that withdrew prior to the qualification, or that qualified to the World Cup by walkover due to other teams' withdrawals, are not considered.
How many teams are in the CAF?
The CAF qualification process reverted to the format used for the 2014 qualification. It began with one preliminary round to narrow the field of 28 entrants to 14 teams in September 2019. The group stage consists of 10 groups of four, with the group winners advancing to the two-legged, home-and-away third round.
How many stadiums are there in the World Cup?
World Cup matches will be played in 12 stadiums spread across 11 cities (two stadiums are in Moscow). A complete list and photos of the World Cup stadiums can be found here . The largest stadium is Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium, which holds 81,000. The smallest is Kaliningrad Stadium, which holds 35,212.
Why is the World Cup important?
More importantly, the World Cup brings together all the nations of the world into an egalitarian competition where the best team wins. While money helps organize and train teams, the World Cup is all about who has the best players, not who can afford the best players like in club soccer.
How many referees are there in FIFA?
FIFA selected 36 referees and 63 assistant referees representing each of the FIFA confederations. Six head referees were chosen from each of the Asia, Africa and Concacaf federations, two from Oceania and 10 from Europe. The U.S. is the only country represented by two head referees (but no soccer team).
Why do referees add time?
But because the referee never stops the clock during a match for things such as injuries, substitutions, goals and the ball being out of play , the referees add time at the end of the first and second halves.
How many players are allowed on the pitch at a time?
While 11 players are allowed on the pitch at one time, each nation is allowed to bring 23 players to the tournament, three of which must be goalkeepers. These players can be changed up to 24 hours before the team’s first match in case of injury, but are typically decided in the month before the tournament.
What are the tiebreakers in soccer?
Tie-breakers, if necessary, will be as follows: 1) points obtained, 2) goal difference, 3) number of goals scored.
When did the World Cup start?
When the World Cup started in 1930 , it was difficult for national teams to traverse the world for a tournament, so it made sense to space the events out. Also, it’s a huge undertaking for a country to host a 32-team tournament. Read more about why here.
How many groups of five are there in FIFA 2021?
The format had to be reworked again, as follows: Round One: Nations ranked 6-35 in the FIFA World Ranking were drawn into six groups of five. Each team played every other team in their group only once, in March and June 2021. The six group winners progressed.
When will the 2022 World Cup start?
Qualifying for the 2022 World Cup began on June 6, 2019, when minor nations from the Asian confederation played their first round of matches. Mongolia's Norjmoogiin Tsedenbal scored the very first goal in qualifying in a 2-0 win over Brunei Darussalam.
Which countries advanced to the 2023 Asian Cup?
Round Two: The six winners from the first round joined the other 34 Asian nations, drawn into eight groups of five teams -- also played as qualifiers for the 2023 Asian Cup finals (for this reason World Cup hosts Qatar will take part).
Which countries are in Group H?
Group H: South Korea, Lebanon, North Korea (withdrew), Turkmenistan, Sri Lanka. Round Three (final group round): The remaining 12 nations have been drawn into two groups of six teams. Group winners and runners-up will qualify for the World Cup. To be played September 2021 to March 2022.
Which country is the host of the FIFA World Cup?
Russia, as the host country, along with Germany, Brazil, Portugal, Argentina, Belgium, Poland and France are the highest-ranked teams in the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking in October 2017. What time does the Final Draw start?
When is the final draw for the 2018 World Cup?
Please try again later. To be held in Moscow on Friday 1 December, the Final Draw for the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™ will start at 18:00 local time. Gary Lineker will host the event with the support of co-host Maria Komandnaya and eight high-profile draw assistants. Featuring 32 teams, eight unbiased pairs of hands and millions of TV viewers, ...
Overview
Qualification tournament rules
Qualification tournaments generally consist of a number of stages, made up of groups or knock-out ties.
In all group tournaments, three points are awarded for a win, one for a draw, and none for a loss. FIFA has set the order of the tie-breakers for teams that finish level on points:
1. goal difference in all group matches
History
Over many years, the World Cup's qualification has evolved, from having no qualification at all in 1930, when the tournament was invitational and only 13 teams entered, to the current three-year process. The first World Cup qualifying match was played on 11 June 1933 when Sweden defeated Estonia 6–2 in Stockholm. The first ever goal in a World Cup qualifying match was scored 7 minutes into the game: it was scored according to some sources by Swedish captain K…
See also
• National team appearances in the FIFA World Cup
• UEFA European Championship qualifying
• AFC Asian Cup qualification
• FIFA Women's World Cup qualification
External links
• History of the FIFA World Cup preliminary competition (by year). Published by FIFA in November 2009; archived from the original by Wayback Machine on 23 October 2013.
• FIFA World Cup Preliminary Competition Statistics (from FIFA.com)
• FIFA World Cup Preliminary History (from FIFA.com)