The 2022 Soccer World Championship is starting soon and fans and bettors throughout the world are gearing up for the tournament, which is the display of the best soccer teams on the globe.
Below are all the details you'd need to know about when the 2022 Soccer World Championship will be held, as well as the specific schedule and format for the tournament.
2022 Soccer World Championship Dates
The 2022 Soccer World Championship will be held from November 20 through December 18. This will be the first tournament that isn't held in either May, June or July -- and the move in time frame was because of the hot weather in those months in the host nation.
The tournament will be held in the tiny Middle Eastern nation of Qatar. This marks the first time the Soccer World Championship will be held in the Arab world, and only the second time it will be held completely in Asia, following the 2002 version that was held in South Korea and Japan.
Who Qualified for the Soccer World Championships 2022?
There are 32 teams that qualified for the Soccer World Championships 2022. It's the last tournament that will feature 32 teams, as the 2026 version will expand to 48 teams.
Group A includes Qatar, Ecuador, Senegal and Netherlands.
Group B includes England, Iran, United States and Wales.
Group C features Argentina, Saudi Arabia, Mexico and Poland.
Group D includes France, Australia, Denmark and Tunisia.
Group E includes Spain, Costa Rica, Germany and Japan.
Group F includes Belgium, Canada, Morocco and Croatia.
Group G includes Brazil, Serbia, Switzerland and Cameroon.
Group H includes Portugal, Ghana, Uruguay and South Korea.
2022 Soccer World Championship Stadiums
There will be eight stadiums that will host Soccer World Championship matches, in five different cities. Lusail is home to Lusail Iconic Stadium, which has a capacity of 80,000 and will host the final match.
Al Kohr is home to Al Bayt Stadium, with a capacity of 60,000. Doha is home to two stadiums -- Stadium 974 and Al Thumama Stadium, which each have a capacity of 40,000.
Al Rayyan is home to three stadiums -- Khalifa International Stadium (45,416 capacity), Education City Stadium (45,350) and Ahmad bin Ali Stadium (44,740 capacity).
Finally, Al Wakrah is home to the Al Janoub Stadium, with a capacity of 40,000.
What is the Soccer World Championships 2022 Format and Schedule?
The Soccer World Championships 2022 starts with Group Stage matches before proceeding onto the Knockout Stages. The Group Stage is a round-robin style, meaning that every team will play every other team in their group once. Teams are then ordered in the standings based on how many points they earn in the Group Stage, before moving onto the Knockout Stages.
There will be at least three matches held every day during the Group Stage, except for the first day, where there will only be just one match.
Sunday, November 20
Group A - Qatar vs Ecuador - Al Bayt Stadium
Monday, November 21
Group A - Senegal vs Netherlands - Al Thumama Stadium
Group B - England vs Iran - Khalifa International Stadium
Group B USA vs Wales - Al Rayyan Stadium
Tuesday, November 22
Group C - Argentina vs Saudi Arabia - Lusail Stadium
Group C - Mexico vs Poland - Stadium 974
Group D - Denmark vs Tunisia - Education City Stadium
Group D - France vs Australia - Al Wakrah Sports Complex
Wednesday, November 23
Group E - Germany vs Japan - Khalifa International Stadium
Group E - Spain vs Costa Rica - Al Thumama Stadium
Group F - Morocco vs Croatia - Al Bayt Stadium
Group F - Belgium vs Canada - Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium
Thursday, November 24
Group G - Switzerland vs Cameroon - Al Wakrah Sports Complex
Group G - Uruguay vs South Korea - Education City Stadium
Group H - Portugal vs Ghana - Stadium 974
Group H - Brazil vs Serbia - Lusail Stadium
Friday, November 25
Group A - Qatar vs Senegal - Al Thumama Stadium
Group A - Netherlands vs Ecuador - Khalifa International Stadium
Group B - Wales vs Iran - Al Rayyan Stadium
Group B - England vs USA - Al Bayt Stadium
Saturday, November 26
Group C - Poland vs Saudi Arabia - Education City Stadium
Group C - Argentina vs Mexico - Lusail Stadium
Group D - Tunisia vs Australia - Al Wakrah Sports Complex
Group D - France vs Denmark - Stadium 974
Sunday, November 27
Group E - Japan vs Costa Rica - Al Rayyan Stadium
Group E - Span vs Germany - Al Bayt Stadium
Group F - Belgium vs Morocco - Al Thumama Stadium
Group F - Croatia vs Canada - Khalifa International Stadium
Monday, November 28
Group G - Cameroon vs Serbia - Al Wakrah Sports Complex
Group G - Brazil vs Switzerland - Stadium 974
Group H - South Korea vs Ghana - Education City Stadium
Group H - Portugal vs Uruguay - Lusail Stadium
Tuesday, November 29
Group A - Ecuador vs Senegal - Khalifa International Stadium
Group A - Netherlands vs Qatar - Al Bayt Stadium
Group B - Iran vs USA - Al Thumama Stadium
Group B - Wales vs England - Al Rayyan Stadium
Wednesday, November 30
Group C - Poland vs Argentina - Stadium 974
Group C - Saudi Arabia vs Mexico - Lusail Stadium
Group D - Tunisia vs France - Education City Stadium
Group D - Australia vs Denmark - Al Wakrah Sports Complex
Thursday, December 1
Group E - Japan vs Spain - Khalifa International Stadium
Group E - Costa Rica vs Germany - Al Bayt Stadium
Group F - Croatia vs Belgium - Al Rayyan Stadium
Group F - Canada vs Morocco - Al Thumama Stadium
Friday, December 2
Group G - Serbia vs Switzerland - Stadium 974
Group G - Cameroon vs Brazil - Lusail Stadium
Group H - South Korea vs Portugal - Education City Stadium
Group H - Ghana vs Uruguay - Al Wakrah Sports Complex
What Happens After the Group Stages?
After all the matches in the Group Stages are over, teams will be ranked in their division by the total number of points they were able to accumulate. Teams are given three points for a win, one point for a draw and no points for a loss.
The top two teams in each group will advance to the Knockout Stages. This means that there will be 16 teams that will advance to this portion of the tournament, which is a single-elimination style. The winner will advance while the loser will go home.
Because of the nature of the single-elimination style of this part of the tournament, there will be no draws. If a match is tied after regulation and extra time, a penalty shootout will determine the winner of the match.
There are four rounds of the Knockout Stages, which we will describe in more detail below.
Round of 16
The top two teams from all eight groups will participate in the Round of 16. These matches will be held on December 3-6. There will be two matches in each of these four days.
Saturday, December 3
Winners Group A vs Runners-up Group B - Khalifa International Stadium (Match 49)
Winners Group C vs Runners-up Group D - Ahmad bin Ali Stadium (Match 50)
Sunday, December 4
Winners Group D vs Runners-up Group C - Al Thumama Stadium (Match 52)
Winners Group B vs Runners-up Group A - Al Bayt Stadium (Match 51)
Monday, December 5
Winners Group E vs Runners-up Group F - Al Janoub Stadium (Match 53)
Winners Group G vs Runners-up Group H - Stadium 974 (Match 54)
Tuesday, December 6
Winners Group F vs Runners-up Group E - Education City Stadium (Match 55)
Winners Group H vs Runners-up Group G - Lusail Stadium (Match 56)
Quarterfinals
The winners of each of the Round of 16 games will advance to the Quarterfinals. There will be eight teams left at this point in time. Two matches will be held on Friday, December 9, and another two will be held on Saturday, December 10.
Friday December 9
Winners Match 53 vs Winners Match 54 - Education City Stadium (Match 58)
Winners Match 49 vs Winners Match 50 - Lusail Stadium (Match 57)
Saturday, December 10
Winners Match 55 vs Winners Match 56 - Al Thumama Stadium (Match 60)
Winners Match 51 vs Winners Match 52 - Al Bayt Stadium (Match 59)
Semifinals
The four winners from the Quarterfinals round will advance to the Semifinals. One match will be held on Tuesday, December 13, with one match being held on Wednesday, December 14.
Tuesday, December 13
Winners Match 57 vs Winners Match 58 - Lusail Stadium
Wednesday, December 14
Winners Match 59 vs Winners Match 60 - Al Bayt Stadium
Final
The Final game of the 2022 Soccer World Championships will be held between the two winners of the Semifinals match. This Final match will be held on Sunday, December 18, at the Lusail Stadium.