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 and where is the World Cup draw?
The draw is scheduled to happen on April 1 at 9:30 pm IST at the Doha Exhibition and Convention Centre in Qatar.
Where can you watch the World Cup draw ?
The FIFA World Cup 2022 draw will be telecast on Network 18 and will be available on the OTT platform Voot as well as Jio TV.
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Who have qualified for the FIFA World Cup 2022?
Which teams have qualified?
- Host — Qatar
- UEFA — Belgium, France, England, Spain, Denmark, Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, Croatia, Serbia, Portugal, Poland
- CONMEBOL — Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Ecuador
- AFC — Iran, Japan, South Korea, Saudi Arabia
- CAF — Cameron, Ghana, Senegal, Morocco, Tunisia
- CONCACAF — Canada, USA, Mexico
- OCEANIA — TBD
How does the World Cup draw work?
The 32 qualified countries will be distributed into four pots based on FIFA’s ranking as on March 31. The three slots for the sides, which are undecided, will have placeholders for the draw.
| Pot 1 | Pot 2 | Pot 3 | Pot 4 |
| Qatar | Netherlands | Iran | Ecuador |
| Brazil | Denmark | Japan | Saudi Arabia |
| Belgium | Germany | Morocco | Ghana |
| France | Switzerland | Serbia | Canada |
| Argentina | Uruguay | Poland | Cameron |
| England | Croatia | South Korea | Wales/Scotland/Ukraine |
| Spain | USA | Senegal | New Zealand/ Costa Rica |
| Portugal | Mexico | Tunisia | Peru/Australia/UAE |
What are the rules for the draw?
- Qatar, being the host, will join the seven best ranked sides in Pot 1 as one of the top-seeded teams.
- Eight groups of four teams each will be created with one team from each pot to form Groups A to H.
- Except Europe, no group should have more than one country from the same region.
- Europe, having 13 slots – the most in the tournament – will be allowed a minimum of one and a maximum of two teams in the same group.
When is the World Cup starting?
FIFA World Cup 2022 starts from November 21, with the opening fixture between the host Qatar and another team from Group A. The kickoff is set at 3:30 pm IST.
The World Cup final will be played on December 18, with the kick-off scheduled for 8:30 pm IST.
