The 2022 FIFA world cup is still a few years away but that has not stopped talks about football’s most prestigious competition. For the first time, the world’s biggest football tournament will be taking place in the Middle East; Qatar to be precise.
Qatar’s successful bid to host the next edition of the world cup will surely attract a host of developments and advanced infrastructure in the country, as preparations have already started ahead of the first match kicking off in 2022.
For the first time in history, a World Cup tournament will not be held in June and July. This is as a result of the hot summers in Qatar. Hence, the tournament will start on the 21st of November and will be concluded less than a month later. On the 18th of December 2022.
This development will affect several European leagues, especially the English Premier League, as fixtures will have to be rescheduled so there are no mix ups. This means that the tradition of English teams playing during the Christmas period will have to be halted.
As for the fixtures, group games will be played between Monday the 21st of November and Friday the 2nd of December. The last-16 games will kick off immediately, as there are two games each to be played daily on December 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th.
December 7th and 8th will be rest days, and in the next two days (December 9th and 10th) the quarter-final games will be played. There will be another two days of rest on the 11th and 12th days of December, with the semi-final fixtures to be played on the 13th and 14th.
On December 17th, the third-place Play-off will be played, and on the 18th of December, the final will be taking place. There will be eight Stadiums used for the tournament and they are:
- Al Bayt Stadium
- Al Janoub Stadium
- Al Rayyan Stadium
- Al Thumama Stadium
- Education City Stadium
- Ras Abu Aboud Stadium
- Lusail Stadium
- Khalifa International Stadium