Christopher Moronta ’22
As we enter a new year, the heavily awaited Fifa World Cup approaches closer as this year it will be held in Qatar from November 21 to December 18, 2022. 15 teams have already qualified for the 32-team competition including:
- Qatar
- Argentina
- Belgium
- Brazil
- Croatia
- Denmark
- England
- France
- Germany
- Iran
- The Netherlands
- Serbia
- South Korea
- Spain
- Switzerland
Qualifiers are still taking place all across the world in search of filling up the remaining 17 seats for football’s largest competition.
In Africa, five teams are awaiting to qualify as we still wait for the winners of the two-legged qualifiers taking place in March.
In Asia, five or six teams wait for qualification as the top two teams in each group will qualify with the third-placed teams in each group, which meet in a single game for the right to into an intercontinental playoff for a place at the World Cup.
In Europe, ten teams have already qualified with three more slots open in the playoffs. Among these play-off teams include Austria, Czech Republic, Italy, North Macedonia, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Scotland, Sweden, Turkey, Ukraine, and Wales.
In North America, Central America, and the Caribbean, three or four teams will represent the continents. The top three will qualify directly with the third-placed winners going into an intercontinental playoff. The top three spots in the group are currently occupied by Canada, the USA, and Mexico.
In South America, a minimum of four teams will qualify with the top four teams automatically making it through while the fifth-placed finishers qualify to play in an intercontinental playoff.
So far, the World Cup qualifiers have seen expected outcomes as well as some surprising upsets. Each country continues to fight for the chance to win the title of the best team in the world.
The Salesian Spectator 