Qatar 2022 World Cup Silver Coin Maradona Messi Pele Signed Argentina Brazil USA

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Seller: Top-Rated Seller checkoutmyunqiuefunitems ✉️ (3,712) 99.9%, Location: Manchester, Take a look at my other items, GB, Ships to: WORLDWIDE, Item: 275955982598 Qatar 2022 World Cup Silver Coin Maradona Messi Pele Signed Argentina Brazil USA. World Cup Coin Qatar 2022 The coin you will receive has never been removed from its case Silver Plated Coin to Commemorate the World Cup Finals in Qatar One side has a football pitch with the Mascot "La'eeb" and Trophy  with the words "FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022" The back has the  logo  with footballs  and the words "FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022" The other side has flags of all the competing nations with the words "Qatar 2022" and a message in arabic  It also comes with a card with World Cup Heroes and their signatures printed onto the card Diego Maradona Cristiano Ronaldo Lionel Messi David Beckham Pele Zinedine Zidane The bottom has the words "FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022" and the logo The back has information about the stadiums with pictures, locatiosn. It also has the teams and draws and route to the final At the bottom is mascots from previous world cups England 1966    World Cup Willie Mexico 1970    Juanito West Germany 1974    Tip and Tap Argentina 1978    Gauchito Spain 1982    Naranjito Mexico 1986    Pique Italy 1990    Ciao United States 1994    Striker, the World Cup Pup France 1998    Footix    South Korea/Japan 2002    Ato, Kaz, and Nik (The Spheriks) Germany 2006    Goleo VI Sidekick: Pille South Africa 2010    Zakumi Brazil 2014    Fuleco Russia 2018    Zabivaka Qatar 2022    La’eeb The dimensions of the card is 65 mm x 65 mm The coin is 40 mm in diameter, weighs about  1 oz This coin you will receive has never been removed from its air-tight acrylic coin holder In Excellent Condition Comes from a pet and smoke free home Sorry about the poor quality photos. They dont do the coin justice which looks a lot better in real life Please Check out my other World Cup Coins >  Please  CLICK HERE TO VISIT MY SHOP
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World Cup 2022: Dates, draw, schedule, kick-off times, final for Qatar tournament

World Cup 2022 takes place in Qatar from November 20 to December 18; 32 teams to compete in eight groups; England face on the second day of the tournament while Wales face USA; Wales vs England on November 29

Friday 12 August 2022 06:24, UK

Wales will face England in Group B at the World Cup in Qatar

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Wales will face England in Group B at the World Cup in Qatar

From key dates to kick-off times, here's all you need to know about this year's tournament.

When and where is the 2022 World Cup?

The 2022 World Cup in Qatar kicks off on Sunday November 20 at the Al Bayt Stadium when the hosts take on Ecuador in Group A.

The tournament was originally set to begin a day later with Senegal's game against the Netherlands at Al Thumama Stadium but Qatar's match was moved forward in August to allow them to open their home tournament.

England will now feature on the second day with their Group B match agains scheduled to take place just eight days after the Premier League shuts down on Monday November 21 with a 1pm UK time kick-off.

After qualifying via the play-offs, Wales' first game will also be on Monday November 21.

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Wales will then play England on Tuesday November 29 in Group B.

The final will be played at the Lusail Stadium in Doha a week before Christmas on Sunday December 18.

The 2022 World Cup Groups are Officially Finalized, Here are the Way too Early Predictions for the Group Stage

by Tim Crean   | More Articles: Soccer

Published onJune 15, 2022

When FIFA held the 2022 World Cup Draw on April 1, 2022, there were still a few group stage slots undetermined. However, in the last week, Australia beat Peru 0-0 (5-4) on penalties, and Costa Rica beat New Zealand 1-0 to officially cement their bids to the world’s biggest soccer tournament in Qatar.

A few weeks earlier, Ukraine beat Scotland 3-1 in a war-postponed qualifier but fell to Wales 1-0 to barely miss out on this year’s World Cup.

This means that 32 teams playing in the 2022 World Cup are set in stone. Here are the way too early predictions for which countries two countries will make it out of each group.

Group A: Qatar (host country, No. 51 in FIFA World Rankings), Netherlands (10), Senegal (20), Ecuador (46)

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The 2022 World Cup host nation, Qatar, actually got an easy group with a path to the Round of 16. The Netherlands, with its host of big-name European players like Frenkie de Jong, Virgil van Dijk, and Memphis Depay, should advance, no problem. Unfortunately for the host nation, new Bayern Munich transfer Sadio Mane’s Senegal has too much firepower to lose to two teams ranked below 45 in the FIFA World Rankings.

Group B: England (5), USA (15), Wales (18), I)

England has struggled in the UEFA Nations League after incredible performances in the 2018 World Cup and 2020 Euros. However, England manager Gareth Southgate should be able to turn it around by November. The USMNT has also struggled to figure out its defense with the loss of Miles Robinson, but that should get fixed in the next few months as well.

Group C: Argentina (4), Mexico (9), Poland (26), Saudi Arabia (49)

The World Cup Trophy is brought to Arad Castle within the 2022 World Cup Trophy Tour as the Group Stage is now set.

The World Cup Trophy | Ayman Yaqoob/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Group C is the first group that doesn’t go chalk at the 2022 World Cup. Argentina should go through in what likely will be Lionel Messi’s last World Cup. Poland will surprise some teams, too, as superstar striker Robert Lewandowski works to justify whatever transfer he makes this summer.

Group D: France (3), Denmark (11), Tunisia (35), Australia (42)

France is loaded and led by one of the best players in the game in Kylian Mbappe. I don’t have a ton of faith in Denmark and think it is slightly overrated by FIFA, but the team got a good draw. Tunisia only has one player in a top European league (Manchester United 19-year-old Hannibal Mejbri), and Australia needed penalties to get by Peru and sneak into the tournament. Yes, Denmark did just beat France in UEFA Nations League but come World Cup time, the French will be ready.  

Group E: Spain (7), Germany (12), Japan (23), Costa Rica (31)

As two of the eight countries that have ever won a World Cup, Germany and Spain are simply two of the best and most historic international football sides in the world. Both should cruise out of this group. The only upset prediction here is that Germany will come out as the No. 1 team in the group, despite the lower FIFA ranking.

Group F: Belgium (2), Croatia (16), Morocco (24), Canada (38)

Both Belgium and Croatia are on the back end of Golden Generations. The core of both these teams have led their countries to great heights but haven’t won the big one. Belgium should get through on Kevin De Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku alone. Here’s where I pick the biggest upset of the World Cup, though. I see Canada, which won CONCACAF, upsetting Croatia and moving on to the Round of 16.

Group G: Brazil (1), Switzerland (14), Serbia (25), Cameroon (37)

One last upset pick — and it’s not Brazil — even though they are already fighting each other in training camp. Here I see Serbia and 24-year-old striker Luka Jović, who could be the breakout star of the 2022 World Cup, getting the best of Switzerland and moving on.

Group H: Portugal (8), Uruguay (13), Korea (29), Ghana (60)

No drama in the last group, though. Portugal still has Cristiano Ronaldo, and youngsters behind him like Bernardo Silva, Bruno Fernandes, and Diogo Jota have developed into stars. With Uruguay it’s another team with an intriguing mix of established veterans (Luis Suárez, Edinson Cavani, Diego Godín) and promising young talent (Darwin Núñez, Ronald Araújo, Federico Valverde). For these reasons, both top teams should roll in Group H.

FIFA World Cup

Organising body FIFA

Founded 1930; 92 years ago

Region International

Number of teams 32 (finals)

Current champions   France (2nd title)

(2018)

Most successful team(s)   Brazil (5 titles)

Television broadcasters List of broadcasters

Website fifa.com/worldcup

 2022 FIFA World Cup

France champion of the Football World Cup Russia 2018.jpg

France, the current world champions

Tournaments

19301934193819501954195819621966197019741978198219861990199419982002200620102014201820222026

The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The championship has been awarded every four years since the inaugural tournament in 1930, except in 1942 and 1946 when it was not held because of the Second World War. The current champion is France, which won its second title at the 2018 tournament in Russia.

The current format involves a qualification phase, which takes place over the preceding three years, to determine which teams qualify for the tournament phase. In the tournament phase, 32 teams, including the automatically qualifying host nation(s), compete for the title at venues within the host nation(s) over about a month.

As of the 2018 FIFA World Cup, twenty-one final tournaments have been held and a total of 79 national teams have competed. The trophy has been won by eight national teams. Brazil have won five times, and they are the only team to have played in every tournament. The other World Cup winners are Germany and Italy, with four titles each; Argentina, France, and inaugural winner Uruguay, with two titles each; and England and Spain, with one title each.

The World Cup is the most prestigious association football tournament in the world, as well as the most widely viewed and followed single sporting event in the world. The cumulative viewership of all matches of the 2006 World Cup was estimated to be 26.29 billion with an estimated 715.1 million people watching the final match, a ninth of the entire population of the planet.[1][2][3][4]

17 countries have hosted the World Cup. Brazil, France, Italy, Germany, and Mexico have each hosted twice, while Uruguay, Switzerland, Sweden, Chile, England, Argentina, Spain, the United States, Japan and South Korea (jointly), South Africa, and Russia have each hosted once. Qatar will host the 2022 tournament, and 2026 will be jointly hosted by Canada, the United States, and Mexico, which will give Mexico the distinction of being the first country to host games in three World Cups.

History

Main article: History of the FIFA World Cup

Previous international competitions

The world's first international football match was a challenge match played in Glasgow in 1872 between Scotland and England.[5] The first international tournament for nations, the inaugural British Home Championship, took place in 1884.[6] As football grew in popularity in other parts of the world at the start of the 20th century, it was held as a demonstration sport with no medals awarded at the 1900 and 1904 Summer Olympics (however, the International Olympic Committee has retroactively upgraded their status to official events), and at the 1906 Intercalated Games.[7]

After FIFA was founded in 1904, it tried to arrange an international football tournament between nations outside the Olympic framework in Switzerland in 1906. These were very early days for international football, and the official history of FIFA describes the competition as having been a failure.[8]

At the 1908 Summer Olympics in London, football became an official competition. Planned by The Football Association (FA), England's football governing body, the event was for amateur players only and was regarded suspiciously as a show rather than a competition. Great Britain (represented by the England national amateur football team) won the gold medals. They repeated the feat at the 1912 Summer Olympics in Stockholm.[9]

With the Olympic event continuing to be contested only between amateur teams, Sir Thomas Lipton organised the Sir Thomas Lipton Trophy tournament in Turin in 1909. The Lipton tournament was a championship between individual clubs (not national teams) from different nations, each one of which represented an entire nation. The competition is sometimes described as The First World Cup,[10] and featured the most prestigious professional club sides from Italy, Germany and Switzerland, but the FA of England refused to be associated with the competition and declined the offer to send a professional team. Lipton invited West Auckland, an amateur side from County Durham, to represent England instead. West Auckland won the tournament and returned in 1911 to successfully defend their title.[11] Prior to the Lipton competition, from 1876 to 1904, games that were considered the "football world championship" were meetings between leading English and Scottish clubs, such as the 1895 game between Sunderland A.F.C. and the Heart of Midlothian F.C., which Sunderland won.[12]

In 1914, FIFA agreed to recognise the Olympic tournament as a "world football championship for amateurs", and took responsibility for managing the event.[13] This paved the way for the world's first intercontinental football competition for nations, at the 1920 Summer Olympics, contested by Egypt and 13 European teams, and won by Belgium.[14] Uruguay won the next two Olympic football tournaments in 1924 and 1928. Those were also the first two open world championships, as 1924 was the start of FIFA's professional era.[15][16]

World Cups before World War II

FIFA president Jules Rimet convinced the confederations to promote an international football tournament

Due to the success of the Olympic football tournaments, FIFA, with President Jules Rimet as the driving force, again started looking at staging its own international tournament outside of the Olympics. On 28 May 1928, the FIFA Congress in Amsterdam decided to stage a world championship itself.[17] With Uruguay now two-time official football world champions and to celebrate their centenary of independence in 1930, FIFA named Uruguay as the host country of the inaugural World Cup tournament.[18]

The national associations of selected nations were invited to send a team, but the choice of Uruguay as a venue for the competition meant a long and costly trip across the Atlantic Ocean for European sides. Indeed, no European country pledged to send a team until two months before the start of the competition. Rimet eventually persuaded teams from Belgium, France, Romania, and Yugoslavia to make the trip.[18] In total, 13 nations took part: seven from South America, four from Europe, and two from North America.[19]

Estadio Centenario, the location of the first World Cup final in 1930 in Montevideo, Uruguay

The first two World Cup matches took place simultaneously on 13 July 1930, and were won by France and the US, who defeated Mexico 4–1 and Belgium 3–0 respectively. The first goal in World Cup history was scored by Lucien Laurent of France.[20] In the final, Uruguay defeated Argentina 4–2 in front of 93,000 people in Montevideo, and became the first nation to win the World Cup.[21] After the creation of the World Cup, FIFA and the IOC disagreed over the status of amateur players, and so football was dropped from the 1932 Summer Olympics.[22][23] After the IOC and FIFA worked out their differences, Olympic football returned at the 1936 Summer Olympics, but was now overshadowed by the more prestigious World Cup.[22]

The issues facing the early World Cup tournaments were the difficulties of intercontinental travel, and war. Few South American teams were willing to travel to Europe for the 1934 World Cup and all North and South American nations except Brazil and Cuba boycotted the 1938 tournament. Brazil was the only South American team to compete in both. The 1942 and 1946 competitions, which Germany and Brazil sought to host,[24] were cancelled due to World War II and its aftermath.[25]

World Cups after World War II

The opening game of the Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, shortly before the 1950 FIFA World Cup

The 1950 World Cup, held in Brazil, was the first to include British participants. British teams withdrew from FIFA in 1920, partly out of unwillingness to play against the countries they had been at war with, and partly as a protest against foreign influence on football,[26] but rejoined in 1946 following FIFA's invitation.[27] The tournament also saw the return of 1930 champions Uruguay, who had boycotted the previous two World Cups. Uruguay won the tournament again after defeating the host nation Brazil, in the match called "Maracanazo" (Portuguese: Maracanaço).[28]

In the tournaments between 1934 and 1978, 16 teams competed in each tournament, except in 1938, when Austria was absorbed into Germany after qualifying, leaving the tournament with 15 teams, and in 1950, when India, Scotland, and Turkey withdrew, leaving the tournament with 13 teams.[29] Most of the participating nations were from Europe and South America, with a small minority from North America, Africa, Asia, and Oceania. These teams were usually defeated easily by the European and South American teams. Until 1982, the only teams from outside Europe and South America to advance out of the first round were: USA, semi-finalists in 1930; Cuba, quarter-finalists in 1938; North Korea, quarter-finalists in 1966; and Mexico, quarter-finalists in 1970.

Expansion to 32 teams

Interior view of the Soccer City in Johannesburg, South Africa, during a match at the 2010 FIFA World Cup

The tournament was expanded to 24 teams in 1982,[30] and then to 32 in 1998,[31] also allowing more teams from Africa, Asia and North America to take part. Since then, teams from these regions have enjoyed more success, with several having reached the quarter-finals: Mexico, quarter-finalists in 1986; Cameroon, quarter-finalists in 1990; South Korea, finishing in fourth place in 2002; Senegal, along with USA, both quarter-finalists in 2002; Ghana, quarter-finalists in 2010; and Costa Rica, quarter-finalists in 2014. Nevertheless, European and South American teams continue to dominate, e.g., the quarter-finalists in 1994, 1998, 2006 and 2018 were all from Europe or South America and so were the finalists of all tournaments so far.

Two hundred teams entered the 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds; 198 nations attempted to qualify for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, while a record 204 countries entered qualification for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.[32]

Expansion to 48 teams

In October 2013, Sepp Blatter spoke of guaranteeing the Caribbean Football Union's region a position in the World Cup.[33] In the edition of 25 October 2013 of the FIFA Weekly Blatter wrote that: "From a purely sporting perspective, I would like to see globalisation finally taken seriously, and the African and Asian national associations accorded the status they deserve at the FIFA World Cup. It cannot be that the European and South American confederations lay claim to the majority of the berths at the World Cup."[34] Those two remarks suggested to commentators that Blatter could be putting himself forward for re-election to the FIFA Presidency.[35]

Following the magazine's publication, Blatter's would-be opponent for the FIFA Presidency, UEFA President Michel Platini, responded that he intended to extend the World Cup to 40 national associations, increasing the number of participants by eight. Platini said that he would allocate an additional berth to UEFA, two each to the Asian Football Confederation and the Confederation of African Football, two shared between CONCACAF and CONMEBOL, and a guaranteed place for the Oceania Football Confederation.[36] Platini was clear about why he wanted to expand the World Cup. He said: "[The World Cup is] not based on the quality of the teams because you don't have the best 32 at the World Cup ... but it's a good compromise. ... It's a political matter so why not have more Africans? The competition is to bring all the people of all the world. If you don't give the possibility to participate, they don't improve."[36]

In October 2016, FIFA president Gianni Infantino stated his support for a 48-team World Cup in 2026.[37] On 10 January 2017, FIFA confirmed the 2026 World Cup will have 48 finalist teams.[38]

2015 FIFA corruption case

Main article: 2015 FIFA corruption case

By May 2015, the games were under a particularly dark cloud because of the 2015 FIFA corruption case, allegations and criminal charges of bribery, fraud and money laundering to corrupt the issuing of media and marketing rights (rigged bids) for FIFA games,[39] with FIFA officials accused of taking bribes totaling more than $150 million over 24 years. In late May, the US Department of Justice announced a 47-count indictment with charges of racketeering, wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy against 14 people. Arrests of over a dozen FIFA officials were made since that time, particularly on 29 May and 3 December.[40] By the end of May 2015, a total of nine FIFA officials and five executives of sports and broadcasting markets had already been charged on corruption. At the time, FIFA president Sepp Blatter announced he would relinquish his position in February 2016.[41]

On 4 June 2015 Chuck Blazer while co-operating with the FBI and the Swiss authorities admitted that he and the other members of FIFA's then-executive committee were bribed in order to promote the 1998 and 2010 World Cups.[42] On 10 June 2015, Swiss authorities seized computer data from the offices of Sepp Blatter.[43] The same day, FIFA postponed the bidding process for the 2026 FIFA World Cup in light of the allegations surrounding bribery in the awarding of the 2018 and 2022 tournaments. Then-secretary general Jérôme Valcke stated, "Due to the situation, I think it's nonsense to start any bidding process for the time being."[44] On 28 October 2015, Blatter and FIFA VP Michel Platini, a potential candidate for presidency, were suspended for 90 days; both maintained their innocence in statements made to the news media.[45]

On 3 December 2015 two FIFA vice-presidents were arrested on suspicion of bribery in the same Zurich hotel where seven FIFA officials had been arrested in May.[46] An additional 16 indictments by the US Department of Justice were announced on the same day.[47]

Biennial World Cup proposition

A biennial World Cup plan was first proposed by the Saudi Arabian Football Federation at the 71st FIFA Congress on 21 May 2021 and prominently backed by former Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger and national federations in Africa and Asia. However, according to a FIFA-commissioned poll and the FIFA Council discussion on 20 October 2021, the majority of football fans still support the four-year World Cup cycle — and continental confederations such as UEFA and CONMEBOL are not on board with the plan.[48][49]

Other FIFA tournaments

The BC Place in Vancouver hosting a 2015 Women's World Cup match

An equivalent tournament for women's football, the FIFA Women's World Cup, was first held in 1991 in China.[50] The women's tournament is smaller in scale and profile than the men's, but is growing; the number of entrants for the 2007 tournament was 120, more than double that of 1991.[51]

Men's football has been included in every Summer Olympic Games except 1896 and 1932. Unlike many other sports, the men's football tournament at the Olympics is not a top-level tournament, and since 1992, an under-23 tournament with each team allowed three over-age players.[52] Women's football made its Olympic debut in 1996.

The FIFA Confederations Cup was a tournament held one year before the World Cup at the World Cup host nation(s) as a dress rehearsal for the upcoming World Cup. It is contested by the winners of each of the six FIFA confederation championships, along with the FIFA World Cup champion and the host country.[53] The first edition took place in 1992 and the last edition was played in 2017. In March 2019, FIFA confirmed that the tournament would no longer be active owing to an expansion of the FIFA Club World Cup in 2021.[54]

FIFA also organises international tournaments for youth football (FIFA U-20 World Cup, FIFA U-17 World Cup, FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup, FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup), club football (FIFA Club World Cup), and football variants such as futsal (FIFA Futsal World Cup) and beach soccer (FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup). The latter three do not have a women's version, although a FIFA Women's Club World Cup has been proposed.[55]

The FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup is held the year before each Women's World Cup and both tournaments are awarded in a single bidding process. The U-20 tournament serves as a dress rehearsal for the larger competition.[56]

Trophy

Main article: FIFA World Cup Trophy

Queen Elizabeth II presenting the Jules Rimet trophy to 1966 World Cup winning England captain Bobby Moore

From 1930 to 1970, the Jules Rimet Trophy was awarded to the World Cup winning team. It was originally simply known as the World Cup or Coupe du Monde, but in 1946 it was renamed after the FIFA president Jules Rimet who set up the first tournament. In 1970, Brazil's third victory in the tournament entitled them to keep the trophy permanently. However, the trophy was stolen in 1983 and has never been recovered, apparently melted down by the thieves.[57]

The current trophy (held by France forward Ousmane Dembélé in 2018) has been presented since 1974

After 1970, a new trophy, known as the FIFA World Cup Trophy, was designed. The experts of FIFA, coming from seven countries, evaluated the 53 presented models, finally opting for the work of the Italian designer Silvio Gazzaniga. The new trophy is 36 cm (14.2 in) high, made of solid 18 carat (75%) gold and weighs 6.175 kg (13.6 lb).[58] The base contains two layers of semi-precious malachite while the bottom side of the trophy bears the engraved year and name of each FIFA World Cup winner since 1974.[58] The description of the trophy by Gazzaniga was: "The lines spring out from the base, rising in spirals, stretching out to receive the world. From the remarkable dynamic tensions of the compact body of the sculpture rise the figures of two athletes at the stirring moment of victory."[59]

This new trophy is not awarded to the winning nation permanently. World Cup winners retain the trophy only until the post-match celebration is finished. They are awarded a gold-plated replica rather than the solid gold original immediately afterwards.[60]

Currently, all members (players, coaches, and managers) of the top three teams receive medals with an insignia of the World Cup Trophy; winners' (gold), runners-up' (silver), and third-place (bronze). In the 2002 edition, fourth-place medals were awarded to hosts South Korea. Before the 1978 tournament, medals were only awarded to the eleven players on the pitch at the end of the final and the third-place match. In November 2007, FIFA announced that all members of World Cup-winning squads between 1930 and 1974 were to be retroactively awarded winners' medals.[61][62][63]

Since 2006, winners of the competition are also awarded the right to wear the FIFA Champions Badge, up until the time at which the winner of the next competition is decided.[64]

Format

Qualification

Main article: FIFA World Cup qualification

Since the second World Cup in 1934, qualifying tournaments have been held to thin the field for the final tournament.[65] They are held within the six FIFA continental zones (Africa, Asia, North and Central America and Caribbean, South America, Oceania, and Europe), overseen by their respective confederations. For each tournament, FIFA decides the number of places awarded to each of the continental zones beforehand, generally based on the relative strength of the confederations' teams.

The qualification process can start as early as almost three years before the final tournament and last over a two-year period. The formats of the qualification tournaments differ between confederations. Usually, one or two places are awarded to winners of intercontinental play-offs. For example, the winner of the Oceanian zone and the fifth-placed team from the Asian zone entered a play-off for a spot in the 2010 World Cup.[66] From the 1938 World Cup onwards, host nations receive automatic qualification to the final tournament. This right was also granted to the defending champions between 1938 and 2002, but was withdrawn from the 2006 FIFA World Cup onward, requiring the champions to qualify. Brazil, winners in 2002, were the first defending champions to play qualifying matches.[67]

Final tournament

For the various formats used in previous tournaments, see History of the FIFA World Cup § Format of each final tournament.

The current final tournament has been used since 1998 and features 32 national teams competing over the course of a month in the host nations. There are two stages: the group stage followed by the knockout stage.[68]

In the group stage, teams compete within eight groups of four teams each. Eight teams are seeded, including the hosts, with the other seeded teams selected using a formula based on the FIFA World Rankings or performances in recent World Cups, and drawn to separate groups.[69] The other teams are assigned to different "pots", usually based on geographical criteria, and teams in each pot are drawn at random to the eight groups. Since 1998, constraints have been applied to the draw to ensure that no group contains more than two European teams or more than one team from any other confederation.[70]

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.[71] The top two teams from each group advance to the knockout stage. Points are used to rank the teams within a group. Since 1994, three points have been awarded for a win, one for a draw and none for a loss (before, winners received two points).

If one considers all possible outcomes (win, draw, loss) for all six matches in a group, there are 729 (= 36) outcome combinations possible. However, 207 of these combinations lead to ties between the second and third places. In such case, the ranking among these teams is determined as follows:[72]

Greatest combined goal difference in all group matches

Greatest combined number of goals scored in all group matches

If more than one team remain level after applying the above criteria, their ranking will be determined as follows:

Greatest number of points in head-to-head matches among those teams

Greatest goal difference in head-to-head matches among those teams

Greatest number of goals scored in head-to-head matches among those teams

Fair play points, defined by the number of yellow and red cards received in the group stage:

Yellow card: minus 1 point

Indirect red card (as a result of a second yellow card): minus 3 points

Direct red card: minus 4 points

Yellow card and direct red card: minus 5 points

If any of the teams above remain level after applying the above criteria, their ranking will be determined by the drawing of lots

The knockout stage is a single-elimination tournament in which teams play each other in one-off matches, with extra time and penalty shootouts used to decide the winner if necessary. It begins with the round of 16 (or the second round) in which the winner of each group plays against the runner-up of another group. This is followed by the quarter-finals, the semi-finals, the third-place match (contested by the losing semi-finalists), and the final.[68]

On 10 January 2017, FIFA approved a new format, the 48-team World Cup (to accommodate more teams), which consists of 16 groups of three teams each, with two teams qualifying from each group, to form a round of 32 knockout stage, to be implemented by 2026.[73]

Hosts

Main article: FIFA World Cup hosts

Selection process

Map of FIFA World Cup final hosts, 1930–2022. Green: once; dark green: twice; light green: planned

Early World Cups were given to countries at meetings of FIFA's congress. The locations were controversial because South America and Europe were by far the two centres of strength in football and travel between them required three weeks by boat. The decision to hold the first World Cup in Uruguay, for example, led to only four European nations competing.[74] The next two World Cups were both held in Europe. The decision to hold the second of these in France was disputed, as the South American countries understood that the location would alternate between the two continents. Both Argentina and Uruguay thus boycotted the 1938 FIFA World Cup.[75]

Since the 1958 FIFA World Cup, to avoid future boycotts or controversy, FIFA began a pattern of alternating the hosts between the Americas and Europe, which continued until the 1998 FIFA World Cup. The 2002 FIFA World Cup, hosted jointly by South Korea and Japan, was the first one held in Asia, and the first tournament with multiple hosts.[76] South Africa became the first African nation to host the World Cup in 2010. The 2014 FIFA World Cup was hosted by Brazil, the first held in South America since Argentina 1978,[77] and was the first occasion where consecutive World Cups were held outside Europe.[78]

Russian delegates celebrate being chosen as the host of the 2018 FIFA World Cup

The host country is now chosen in a vote by FIFA's Council. This is done under an exhaustive ballot system. The national football association of a country desiring to host the event receives a "Hosting Agreement" from FIFA, which explains the steps and requirements that are expected from a strong bid. The bidding association also receives a form, the submission of which represents the official confirmation of the candidacy. After this, a FIFA designated group of inspectors visit the country to identify that the country meets the requirements needed to host the event and a report on the country is produced. The decision on who will host the World Cup is usually made six or seven years in advance of the tournament. However, there have been occasions where the hosts of multiple future tournaments were announced at the same time, as was the case for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, which were awarded to Russia and Qatar, with Qatar becoming the first Middle Eastern country to host the tournament.[79][80]

For the 2010 and 2014 World Cups, the final tournament is rotated between confederations, allowing only countries from the chosen confederation (Africa in 2010, South America in 2014) to bid to host the tournament. The rotation policy was introduced after the controversy surrounding Germany's victory over South Africa in the vote to host the 2006 tournament. However, the policy of continental rotation did not continue beyond 2014, so any country, except those belonging to confederations that hosted the two preceding tournaments, can apply as hosts for World Cups starting from 2018.[81] This is partly to avoid a similar scenario to the bidding process for the 2014 tournament, where Brazil was the only official bidder.[82]

The 2026 FIFA World Cup was chosen to be held in the United States, Canada and Mexico, marking the first time a World Cup has been shared by three host nations.[83] The 2026 tournament will be the biggest World Cup ever held, with 48 teams playing 80 matches. Sixty matches will take place in the US, including all matches from the quarter-finals onward, while Canada and Mexico will host 10 games each.[83]

Total times teams hosted by confederation

Confederations and years in bold have an upcoming competition.

Confederation Total (Hosts) Years

AFC 2 South Korea Japan 2002, Qatar 2022

CAF 1 South Africa 2010

CONCACAF 4 Mexico 1970, Mexico 1986, United States 1994, Canada Mexico United States 2026

CONMEBOL 5 Uruguay 1930, Brazil 1950, Chile 1962, Argentina 1978, Brazil 2014

OFC 0  

UEFA 11 Italy 1934, France 1938, Switzerland 1954, Sweden 1958, England 1966, Germany 1974, Spain 1982, Italy 1990, France 1998, Germany 2006, Russia 2018

Performances

See also: Results of host nations in the FIFA World Cup

Six of the eight champions have won one of their titles while playing in their own homeland, the exceptions being Brazil, who finished as runners-up after losing the deciding match on home soil in 1950 and lost their semi-final against Germany in 2014, and Spain, which reached the second round on home soil in 1982. England (1966) won its only title while playing as a host nation. Uruguay (1930), Italy (1934), Argentina (1978), and France (1998) won their first titles as host nations but have gone on to win again, while Germany (1974) won their second title on home soil.[84]

Other nations have also been successful when hosting the tournament. Switzerland (quarter-finals 1954), Sweden (runners-up in 1958), Chile (third place in 1962), South Korea (fourth place in 2002), and Mexico (quarter-finals in 1970 and 1986) all have their best results when serving as hosts. So far, South Africa (2010) has been the only host nation to fail to advance beyond the first round.[85]

Attendance

See also: List of sports attendance figures

Year Hosts Venues/

Cities Total

attendance † Matches Avg.

attendance Highest attendances ‡

Number Venue Game(s)

1930   Uruguay 3/1 590,549 18 32,808 93,000 Estadio Centenario, Montevideo Uruguay 6–1 Yugoslavia, Semi-final

1934   Italy 8/8 363,000 17 21,353 55,000 Stadio Nazionale PNF, Rome Italy 2–1 Czechoslovakia, Final

1938   France 10/9 375,700 18 20,872 58,455 Olympique de Colombes, Paris France 1–3 Italy, Quarter-final

1950   Brazil 6/6 1,045,246 22 47,511 173,850[86] Maracanã Stadium, Rio de Janeiro Brazil 1–2 Uruguay, Deciding match

1954   Switzerland 6/6 768,607 26 29,562 63,000 Wankdorf Stadium, Bern West Germany 3–2 Hungary, Final

1958   Sweden 12/12 819,810 35 23,423 50,928 Ullevi Stadium, Gothenburg Brazil 2–0 Soviet Union, Group stage

1962   Chile 4/4 893,172 32 27,912 68,679 Estadio Nacional, Santiago Brazil 4–2 Chile, Semi-final

1966   England 8/7 1,563,135 32 48,848 98,270 Wembley Stadium, London England 4–2 West Germany, Final

1970   Mexico 5/5 1,603,975 32 50,124 108,192 Estadio Azteca, Mexico City Mexico 1–0 Belgium, Group stage

1974   West Germany 9/9 1,865,753 38 49,099 83,168 Olympiastadion, Munich West Germany 1–0 Chile, Group stage

1978   Argentina 6/5 1,545,791 38 40,679 71,712 Estadio Monumental, Buenos Aires Italy 1–0 Argentina, Group stage

1982   Spain 17/14 2,109,723 52 40,572 95,500 Camp Nou, Barcelona Argentina 0–1 Belgium, Opening match

1986   Mexico 12/11 2,394,031 52 46,039 114,600 Estadio Azteca, Mexico City Mexico 1–1 Paraguay, Group stage

Argentina 3–2 West Germany, Final

1990   Italy 12/12 2,516,215 52 48,389 74,765 San Siro, Milan West Germany 4–1 Yugoslavia, Group stage

1994   United States 9/9 3,587,538 52 68,991 94,194 Rose Bowl, Pasadena, California Brazil 0–0 (3–2p) Italy, Final

1998   France 10/10 2,785,100 64 43,517 80,000 Stade de France, Saint-Denis Brazil 0–3 France, Final

2002   South Korea

 Japan 20/20 2,705,197 64 42,269 69,029 International Stadium, Yokohama, Japan Brazil 2–0 Germany, Final

2006   Germany 12/12 3,359,439 64 52,491 72,000 Olympiastadion, Berlin Germany 1–1 (4–2p) Argentina, Quarter-final

2010   South Africa 10/9 3,178,856 64 49,670 84,490 Soccer City, Johannesburg Spain 1–0 Netherlands, Final

2014   Brazil 12/12 3,429,873 64 53,592 74,738 Maracanã Stadium, Rio de Janeiro Germany 1–0 Argentina, Final

2018   Russia 12/11 3,031,768 64 47,371 78,011 Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow France 4–2 Croatia, Final

Overall 40,532,478 900 45,036 173,850[86] Maracanã Stadium, Rio de Janeiro (1950)

dagger Source: FIFA[87]

double-dagger The best-attended single match, shown in the last three columns, has been the final in 11 of the 21 World Cups as of 2018. Another match or matches drew more attendance than the final in 1930, 1938, 1958, 1962, 1970–1982, 1990, and 2006.

Broadcasting and promotion

See also: List of FIFA World Cup broadcasters

A Coca-Cola bottle promoting the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan

The World Cup was first televised in 1954 and is now the most widely viewed and followed sporting event in the world. The cumulative viewership of all matches of the 2006 World Cup was estimated to be 26.29 billion.[1] 715.1 million individuals watched the final match of the tournament, almost a ninth of the entire population of the planet. The 2006 World Cup draw, which decided the distribution of teams into groups, was watched by 300 million viewers.[88] The World Cup attracts many sponsors such as Coca-Cola, McDonald's and Adidas. For these companies and many more, being a sponsor strongly impacts their global brands. Host countries typically experience a multimillion-dollar revenue increase from the month-long event. The governing body of the sport, FIFA, generated $4.8 billion in revenue from the 2014 tournament,[89] and $6.1 billion from the 2018 tournament.[90]

Manufactured by Adidas since the 1970 World Cup, official match balls displayed at FIFA headquarters in Zürich

Each FIFA World Cup since 1966 has its own mascot or logo. World Cup Willie, the mascot for the 1966 competition, was the first World Cup mascot.[91] World Cups feature official match balls specially designed for each tournament. After Slazenger produced the ball for the 1966 World Cup Adidas became the official supplier to FIFA.[92] Each World Cup also has an official song, which have been performed by artists ranging from Shakira to Will Smith.[93][94] Other songs, such as “Nessun dorma”, performed by The Three Tenors at four World Cup concerts, have also become identified with the tournament.[95]

Forming a partnership with FIFA in 1970, Panini published its first sticker album for the 1970 World Cup.[96] Since then, collecting and trading stickers and cards has become part of the World Cup experience, especially for the younger generation.[97] FIFA has also licensed World Cup video games since 1986, with Electronic Arts the current license holder.[96]

Results

See also: List of FIFA World Cup finals

Keys

aet: result/match won after extra time

p: match won after penalty shoot-out

TBD: to be determined

Ed. Year Host First place game Third place game Num.

teams

1st place, gold medalist(s) Champion Score 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Runner-up 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Third Score Fourth

1 1930   Uruguay

Uruguay 4–2

Estadio Centenario, Montevideo

Argentina

United States

– [n 1]

Yugoslavia 13

2 1934   Italy

Italy 2–1 (a.e.t.)

Stadio Nazionale PNF, Rome

Czechoslovakia

Germany 3–2

Stadio Giorgio Ascarelli, Naples

Austria 16

3 1938   France

Italy 4–2

Stade de Colombes, Paris

Hungary

Brazil 4–2

Parc Lescure, Bordeaux

Sweden 15

1942 (Not held because of World War II)

1946 (Not held because of World War II)

4 1950   Brazil

Uruguay 2–1 [n 2]

Maracanã, Rio de Janeiro

Brazil

Sweden 3–1 [n 2] Pacaembu, São Paulo

Spain 13

5 1954   Switzerland

West Germany 3–2

Wankdorfstadion, Bern

Hungary

Austria 3–1

Hardturm, Zürich

Uruguay 16

6 1958   Sweden

Brazil 5–2

Råsundastadion, Solna

Sweden

France 6–3

Ullevi, Gothenburg

West Germany 16

7 1962   Chile

Brazil 3–1

Estadio Nacional, Santiago

Czechoslovakia

Chile 1–0

Estadio Nacional, Santiago

Yugoslavia 16

8 1966   England

England 4–2 (a.e.t.)

Wembley Stadium, London

West Germany

Portugal 2–1

Wembley Stadium, London

Soviet Union 16

9 1970   Mexico

Brazil 4–1

Estadio Azteca, Mexico City

Italy

West Germany 1–0

Estadio Azteca, Mexico City

Uruguay 16

10 1974   West Germany

West Germany 2–1

Olympiastadion, Munich

Netherlands

Poland 1–0

Olympiastadion, Munich

Brazil 16

11 1978   Argentina

Argentina 3–1 (a.e.t.)

Monumental de Núñez, Buenos Aires

Netherlands

Brazil 2–1

Monumental de Núñez, Buenos Aires

Italy 16

12 1982   Spain

Italy 3–1

Santiago Bernabéu, Madrid

West Germany

Poland 3–2

Estadio José Rico Pérez, Alicante

France 24

13 1986   Mexico

Argentina 3–2

Estadio Azteca, Mexico City

West Germany

France 4–2 (a.e.t.)

Estadio Cuauhtémoc, Puebla

Belgium 24

14 1990   Italy

West Germany 1–0

Stadio Olimpico, Rome

Argentina

Italy 2–1

Stadio San Nicola, Bari

England 24

15 1994   United States

Brazil 0–0 (a.e.t.)

(3–2 p)

Rose Bowl, Pasadena

Italy

Sweden 4–0

Rose Bowl, Pasadena

Bulgaria 24

16 1998   France

France 3–0

Stade de France, Saint-Denis

Brazil

Croatia 2–1

Parc des Princes, Paris

Netherlands 32

17 2002   South Korea

 Japan

Brazil 2–0

International Stadium, Yokohama

Germany

Turkey 3–2

Daegu Stadium, Daegu

South Korea 32

18 2006   Germany

Italy 1–1 (a.e.t.)

(5–3 p)

Olympiastadion, Berlin

France

Germany 3–1

Gottlieb-Daimler-Stadion, Stuttgart

Portugal 32

19 2010   South Africa

Spain 1–0 (a.e.t.)

Soccer City, Johannesburg

Netherlands

Germany 3–2

Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth

Uruguay 32

20 2014   Brazil

Germany 1–0 (a.e.t.)

Maracanã, Rio de Janeiro

Argentina

Netherlands 3–0

Estádio Nacional, Brasília

Brazil 32

21 2018   Russia

France 4–2

Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow

Croatia

Belgium 2–0

Krestovsky Stadium, Saint Petersburg

England 32

22 2022   Qatar TBD TBD

Iconic Stadium, Lusail TBD TBD TBD

Khalifa Stadium, Al Rayyan TBD 32

23 2026   Canada

 Mexico

 United States TBD TBD

TBD TBD TBD TBD

TBD TBD 48

Notes

 There was no third place match in 1930; the two losing semi-finalists are ranked according to their overall records in the tournament.[98]

 The final stage in 1950 was a round-robin group of four teams. Coincidentally, one of the last two matches pitted together the top two teams (and the only two who could win the title), and the other was between the bottom two teams. Uruguay v Brazil is often considered the de facto final of the 1950 World Cup.[99][100]

In all, 79 nations have played in at least one World Cup.[101] Of these, eight national teams have won the World Cup, and they have added stars to their badges, with each star representing a World Cup victory. (Uruguay, however, choose to display four stars on their badge, representing their two gold medals at the 1924 and 1928 Summer Olympics, which are recognised by FIFA as World Championships, and their two World Cup titles in 1930 and 1950).

With five titles, Brazil are the most successful World Cup team and also the only nation to have played in every World Cup (21) to date.[102] Brazil were also the first team to win the World Cup for the third (1970), fourth (1994) and fifth (2002) time. Italy (1934 and 1938) and Brazil (1958 and 1962) are the only nations to have won consecutive titles. West Germany (1982–1990) and Brazil (1994–2002) are the only nations to appear in three consecutive World Cup finals. Germany has made the most top-four finishes (13), medals (12), as well as the most finals (8).

Map of countries' best results

Teams reaching the top four

See also: National team appearances in the FIFA World Cup § Comprehensive team results by tournament

Teams reaching the top four

Team Titles Runners-up Third place Fourth place Top 4

Total

 Brazil 5 (1958, 1962, 1970, 1994, 2002) 2 (1950*, 1998) 2 (1938, 1978) 2 (1974, 2014*) 11

 Germany1 4 (1954, 1974*, 1990, 2014) 4 (1966, 1982, 1986, 2002) 4 (1934, 1970, 2006*, 2010) 1 (1958) 13

 Italy 4 (1934*, 1938, 1982, 2006) 2 (1970, 1994) 1 (1990*) 1 (1978) 8

 Argentina 2 (1978*, 1986) 3 (1930, 1990, 2014) 5

 France 2 (1998*, 2018) 1 (2006) 2 (1958, 1986) 1 (1982) 6

 Uruguay 2 (1930*, 1950) 3 (1954, 1970, 2010) 5

 England 1 (1966*) 2 (1990, 2018) 3

 Spain 1 (2010) 1 (1950) 2

 Netherlands 3 (1974, 1978, 2010) 1 (2014) 1 (1998) 5

 Hungary 2 (1938, 1954) 2

 Czech Republic2 2 (1934, 1962) 2

 Sweden 1 (1958*) 2 (1950, 1994) 1 (1938) 4

 Croatia 1 (2018) 1 (1998) 2

 Poland 2 (1974, 1982) 2

 Austria 1 (1954) 1 (1934) 2

 Portugal 1 (1966) 1 (2006) 2

 Belgium 1 (2018) 1 (1986) 2

 United States 1 (1930) 1

 Chile 1 (1962*) 1

 Turkey 1 (2002) 1

 Serbia3 2 (1930, 1962) 2

 Russia4 1 (1966) 1

 Bulgaria 1 (1994) 1

 South Korea 1 (2002*) 1

* hosts

1 includes results representing West Germany between 1954 and 1990

2 includes results representing Czechoslovakia between 1934 and 1990

3 includes results representing Yugoslavia and Serbia and Montenegro between 1930 and 2006

4 includes results representing the Soviet Union between 1958 and 1990

Best performances by confederations

See also: FIFA World Cup results by confederation

South Koreans watching their nation on the big screens in Seoul Plaza during the 2002 World Cup when they became the first Asian country to reach the semi-finals

To date, the final of the World Cup has only been contested by teams from the UEFA (Europe) and CONMEBOL (South America) confederations. European nations have won twelve titles, while South American have won nine. Only two teams from outside these two continents have ever reached the semi-finals of the competition: United States (North, Central America and Caribbean) in 1930 and South Korea (Asia) in 2002. The best result of an African team is reaching the quarter-finals: Cameroon in 1990, Senegal in 2002, and Ghana in 2010. Only one Oceanian qualifier, Australia in 2006, has advanced to the second round.[103]

Brazil, Argentina, Spain and Germany are the only teams to win a World Cup outside their continental confederation; Brazil came out victorious in Europe (1958), North America (1970 and 1994) and Asia (2002). Argentina won a World Cup in North America in 1986, while Spain won in Africa in 2010. In 2014, Germany became the first European team to win in the Americas. Only on five occasions have consecutive World Cups been won by teams from the same continent. The current run of four champions from one continental confederation (Italy, Spain, Germany, and France) has not happened before. Italy and Brazil successfully defended their titles in 1938 and 1962 respectively, while Italy's triumph in 2006 has been followed by wins for Spain in 2010, Germany in 2014 and France in 2018. Currently, it is also the first time that one of the currently winning continents (Europe) is ahead of the other (South America) by more than one championship.

Total times teams qualified by confederation

Confederation AFC CAF CONCACAF CONMEBOL OFC UEFA Total

Teams 37 44 42 85 4 245 457

Top 16 6 9 14 35 1 91 156

Top 8 2 3 5 34 0 100 144

Top 4 1 0 1 22 0 60 84

Top 2 0 0 0 14 0 28 42

1st 0 0 0 9 0 12 21

2nd 0 0 0 5 0 16 21

3rd 0 0 1 3 0 17 21

4th 1 0 0 5 0 15 21

Awards

Main article: FIFA World Cup awards

At the end of each World Cup, awards are presented to the players and teams for accomplishments other than their final team positions in the tournament. There are currently six awards:[104]

The Golden Ball for the best player, determined by a vote of media members (first awarded in 1982); the Silver Ball and the Bronze Ball are awarded to the players finishing second and third in the voting respectively;[105]

The Golden Boot (sometimes called the Golden Shoe) for the top goalscorer (first awarded in 1982, but retrospectively applied to all tournaments from 1930); most recently, the Silver Boot and the Bronze Boot have been awarded to the second and third top goalscorers respectively;[106]

The Golden Glove Award (formerly the Yashin Award) for the best goalkeeper, decided by the FIFA Technical Study Group (first awarded in 1994);[107]

The Best Young Player Award for the best player aged 21 or younger at the start of the calendar year, decided by the FIFA Technical Study Group (first awarded in 2006);[108]

The FIFA Fair Play Trophy for the team with the best record of fair play, according to the points system and criteria established by the FIFA Fair Play Committee (first awarded in 1978);[108]

The Most Entertaining Team for the team that has entertained the public the most during the World Cup, determined by a poll of the general public (first awarded in 1994);[108]

An All-Star Team consisting of the best players of the tournament has also been announced for each tournament since 1998.

Records and statistics

Main article: List of FIFA World Cup records and statistics

See also: List of FIFA World Cup winning players, List of FIFA World Cup winning managers, and National team appearances in the FIFA World Cup

Germany's Lothar Matthäus played a record 25 World Cup matches across a joint record five tournaments

Three players share the record for playing in the most World Cups; Mexico's Antonio Carbajal (1950–1966) and Rafael Márquez (2002–2018); and Germany's Lothar Matthäus (1982–1998) all played in five tournaments.[109] Matthäus has played the most World Cup matches overall, with 25 appearances.[110] Brazil's Djalma Santos (1954–1962), West Germany's Franz Beckenbauer (1966–1974), and Germany's Philipp Lahm (2006–2014) are the only players to be named to three World Cup All-Star Teams.[111]

Miroslav Klose of Germany (2002–2014) is the all-time top scorer at the World Cup with 16 goals. He broke Ronaldo of Brazil's record of 15 goals (1998–2006) during the 2014 semi-final match against Brazil. West Germany's Gerd Müller (1970–1974) is third, with 14 goals.[112] The fourth-placed goalscorer, France's Just Fontaine, holds the record for the most goals scored in a single World Cup; all his 13 goals were scored in the 1958 tournament.[113]

Pelé is the only three-time World Cup winner

In November 2007, FIFA announced that all members of World Cup-winning squads between 1930 and 1974 were to be retroactively awarded winners' medals.[61] This made Brazil's Pelé the only player to have won three World Cup winners' medals (1958, 1962, and 1970, although he did not play in the 1962 final due to injury),[114] with 20 other players who have won two winners' medals. Seven players have collected all three types of World Cup medals (winners', runner- ups', and third-place); five players were from West Germany's squad of 1966–1974: Franz Beckenbauer, Jürgen Grabowski, Horst-Dieter Höttges, Sepp Maier, and Wolfgang Overath (1966–1974), Italy's Franco Baresi (1982, 1990, 1994) and the most recent has been Miroslav Klose of Germany (2002–2014) with four consecutive medals.[115]

Brazil's Mário Zagallo, West Germany's Franz Beckenbauer and France's Didier Deschamps are the only people to date to win the World Cup as both player and head coach. Zagallo won in 1958 and 1962 as a player and in 1970 as head coach.[116] Beckenbauer won in 1974 as captain and in 1990 as head coach,[117] and Deschamps repeated the feat in 2018, after having won in 1998 as captain.[118] Italy's Vittorio Pozzo is the only head coach to ever win two World Cups (1934 and 1938).[119] All World Cup-winning head coaches were natives of the country they coached to victory.[120]

Among the national teams, Germany and Brazil have played the most World Cup matches (109), Germany appeared in the most finals (8), semi-finals (13), and quarter-finals (16), while Brazil has appeared in the most World Cups (21), has the most wins (73) and has scored the most goals (229).[121][122] The two teams have played each other twice in the World Cup, in the 2002 final and in the 2014 semi-final.[123]

Top goalscorers

Main article: FIFA World Cup top goalscorers

Individual

Miroslav Klose scored a record 16 goals across four World Cups

Rank Player Goals scored

#1 Germany Miroslav Klose 16

#2 Brazil Ronaldo 15

#3 West Germany Gerd Müller 14

#4 France Just Fontaine 13

#5 Brazil Pelé 12

#6 Germany Jürgen Klinsmann 11

Hungary Sándor Kocsis

Country

Rank National Team Goals scored

#1   Brazil 229

#2   Germany 226

#3   Argentina 137

#4   Italy 128

#5   France 120

#6   Spain 99

#7   England 91

#8   Uruguay 87

 Hungary 87

#10   Netherlands 86

All-time table for champions

Main article: National team appearances in the FIFA World Cup § Overall team records

The system used in the World Cup up to 1990 was 2 points for a win. In this ranking 3 points are awarded for a win, 1 for a draw and 0 for a loss. As per statistical convention in football, matches decided in extra time are counted as wins and losses, while matches decided by penalty shoot-outs are counted as draws. Teams are ranked by total points, then by goal difference, then by goals scored.[124]

Rank Team Participations Titles Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts

1   Brazil 21 5 109 73 18 18 229 105 124 237

2   Germany[125] 19 4 109 67 20 22 226 125 101 221

3   Italy 18 4 83 45 21 17 128 77 51 156

4   Argentina 17 2 81 43 15 23 137 93 44 144

5   France 15 2 66 34 13 19 120 77 43 115

6   England 15 1 69 29 21 19 91 64 27 108

7   Spain 15 1 63 30 15 18 99 72 27 105

8   Uruguay 13 2 56 24 12 20 87 74 13 84

See also

icon Association football portal

Sports portal

Olympics portal

icon Games portal

World portal

FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup

FIFA Club World Cup

FIFA Confederations Cup

FIFA Futsal World Cup

FIFA U-17 World Cup

FIFA U-20 World Cup

FIFA Women's World Cup

FIFA World Cup referees

List of association football competitions

List of FIFA World Cup finals

National team appearances in the FIFA World Cup

Citations

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 This practice has been installed since the 1986 FIFA World Cup. In some cases during previous tournaments, for example, Argentina 6–0 Peru in Argentina 1978 and West Germany 1–0 Austria in Spain 1982, teams that played the latter match were perceived to gain an unfair advantage by knowing the score of the earlier match, and subsequently obtaining a result that ensured advancement to the next stage. ("1978 Argentina". CBC.; "1982 Spain". CBC.)

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 "Brazil". FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. Archived from the original on 3 June 2007. Retrieved 12 May 2014.

 Australia's qualification in 2006 was through the Oceanian zone as they were a member of the OFC member during qualifying. However, on 1 January 2006, they left the Oceania Football Confederation and joined the Asian Football Confederation.

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 Includes results of  West Germany from 1954 to 1990.

Cited works

Glanville, Brian (2005). The Story of the World Cup. Faber. ISBN 0-571-22944-1.

External links

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Categories: FIFA World CupWorld championships in association footballRecurring sporting events established in 1930Quadrennial sporting eventsJune sporting eventsJuly sporting eventsAssociation football events

Qatar (/ˈkætɑːr/,[10] /ˈkɑːtɑːr/ (listen), /ˈkɑːtər/ or /kəˈtɑːr/ (listen);[11] Arabic: قطر, romanized: Qaṭar [ˈqatˤar]; local vernacular pronunciation: [ˈɡɪtˤɑr]),[12][13] officially the State of Qatar,[a] is a country in Western Asia. It occupies the small Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and shares its sole land border with neighbouring Gulf Cooperation Council monarchy Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of its territory surrounded by the Persian Gulf. The Gulf of Bahrain, an inlet of the Persian Gulf, separates Qatar from nearby Bahrain. The capital is Doha, home to over 80% of the nation's population.

Qatar has been ruled as a hereditary monarchy by the House of Thani since Mohammed bin Thani signed a treaty with the British in 1868 that recognised its separate status. Following Ottoman rule, Qatar became a British protectorate in the early 20th century until gaining independence in 1971. The current emir is Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, who holds nearly all executive and legislative authority under the Constitution of Qatar, as well as controlling the judiciary.[14] He appoints the prime minister and cabinet. The partially-elected Consultative Assembly can block legislation and has a limited ability to dismiss ministers.

In early 2017, Qatar's total population was 2.6 million: 313,000 Qatari citizens and 2.3 million expatriates.[15] Its official religion is Islam.[16] In terms of income, the country has the fourth-highest GDP (PPP) per capita in the world,[17] and the sixth-highest GNI per capita (Atlas method).[18] Qatar has the third-highest HDI in the Arab world.[19] It is a high-income economy, backed by the world's third-largest natural gas reserves and oil reserves.[20] Qatar is the world's largest exporter of liquefied natural gas,[21] and the world's largest emitter of carbon dioxide per capita.[22]

In the 21st century, Qatar emerged as a middle power in the Arab world through its resource-wealth,[23][24] as well as its globally expanding media group, Al Jazeera Media Network, and reportedly supporting several rebel groups financially during the Arab Spring.[25][26][27] Qatar's human rights record has been regarded by academics and non-governmental organisations as being generally poor, with restrictions on civil liberties such as the freedoms of association, expression and the press, as well as its treatment of thousands of migrant workers amounting to forced labour for projects in the country.[28][29] The 2022 FIFA World Cup was awarded to Qatar under controversial circumstances, making it the first Muslim country in the Arab world to host the event.[30] Qatar hosted the 2006 Asian Games, and will also host the 2030 Asian Games.[31]

Qatar's culture is similar to other countries in Eastern Arabia, being significantly influenced by Islam. Qatar National Day, hosted annually on 18 December, has had an important role in developing a sense of national identity.[257] It is observed in remembrance of Jassim bin Mohammed Al Thani's succession to the throne and his subsequent unification of the country's various tribes.[258][259] Since 1 July 2008, Hamad Bin Abdulaziz Al-Kawari has been the Minister for Culture, Arts and Heritage of Qatar.

Arts and museums

Main articles: Collecting practices of the Al-Thani Family, Qatari art, and Public art in Qatar

Museum of Islamic Art in Doha

Several senior members of Qatar's ruling Al Thani family are noted collectors of Islamic and contemporary art.

The Museum of Islamic Art, opened in 2008, is regarded as one of the best museums in the region.[260] This, and several other Qatari museums, like the Arab Museum of Modern Art, falls under the Qatar Museums Authority (QMA) which is led by Sheikha Al-Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, the sister of the ruling Emir of the State of Qatar, and the prominent collector and art patron Sheikh Hassan bin Mohammed Al Thani.[261] The QMA also sponsors artistic events abroad, such as major exhibitions by Takahashi Murakami in Versailles (2010) and Damien Hirst in London (2012).

Qatar is the world's biggest buyer in the art market by value.[262] The Qatari cultural sector is being developed to enable the country to reach world recognition to contribute to the development of a country that comes mainly from its resources from the gas industry.[263]

The National Museum of Qatar was opened to the public on 28 March 2019.[264]

Literature

Main article: Qatari literature

Qatar National Library in Doha

Qatari literature traces its origins back to the 19th century. Originally, written poetry was the most common form of expression. Abdul Jalil Al-Tabatabai and Mohammed bin Abdullah bin Uthaymeen, two poets dating back to the early 19th century, formed the corpus of Qatar's earliest written poetry. Poetry later fell out of favor after Qatar began reaping the profits from oil exports in the mid-20th century and many Qataris abandoned their Bedouin traditions in favor of more urban lifestyles.[265]

Due to the increasing number of Qataris who began receiving formal education during the 1950s and other significant societal changes, 1970 witnessed the introduction of the first short story anthology, and in 1993 the first locally authored novels were published. Poetry, particularly the predominant nabati form, retained some importance but would soon be overshadowed by other literary types.[265] Unlike most other forms of art in Qatari society, females have been involved in the modern literature movement on a similar magnitude to males.[266]

Media

Main article: Media of Qatar

The news desk of Al Jazeera English, a Qatari news channel

Qatar's media was classified as "not free" in the 2014 Freedom of the Press report by Freedom House.[267] TV broadcasting in Qatar was started in 1970.[268] Al Jazeera is a main television network headquartered in Doha, Qatar. Al Jazeera initially launched in 1996 as an Arabic news and current affairs satellite TV channel of the same name, but has since expanded into a global network of several speciality TV channels known collectively as the Al Jazeera Media Network.

It has been reported that journalists practice self-censorship, particularly in regards to the government and ruling family of Qatar.[269] Criticism of the government, Emir and ruling family in the media is illegal. According to article 46 of the press law "The Emir of the state of Qatar shall not be criticised and no statement can be attributed to him unless under a written permission from the manager of his office."[270] Journalists are also subject to prosecution for insulting Islam.[267]

In 2014, a Cybercrime Prevention Law was passed. The law is said to restrict press freedom and carries prison sentences and fines for broad reasons such as jeopardising local peace or publishing false news.[271] The Gulf Center for Human Rights has stated that the law is a threat to freedom of speech and has called for certain articles of the law to be revoked.[272]

Press media has undergone expansion in recent years. There are currently seven newspapers in circulation in Qatar, with four being published in Arabic and three being published in English.[273] There are also newspapers from India, Nepal and Sri Lanka with editions printed from Qatar.

In regards to telecommunication infrastructure, Qatar is the highest-ranked Middle Eastern country in the World Economic Forum's Network Readiness Index (NRI) – an indicator for determining the development level of a country's information and communication technologies. Qatar ranked number 23 overall in the 2014 NRI ranking, unchanged from 2013.[274]

Music

Main article: Music of Qatar

The music of Qatar is based on Bedouin poetry, song and dance. Traditional dances in Doha are performed on Friday afternoons; one such dance is the Ardah, a stylised martial dance performed by two rows of dancers who are accompanied by an array of percussion instruments, including al-ras (a large drum whose leather is heated by an open fire), tambourines and cymbals with small drums.[275] Other percussion instruments used in folk music include galahs (a tall clay jar) and tin drinking cups known as tus or tasat, usually used in conjunction with a tabl, a longitudinal drum beaten with a stick.[276] String instruments, such as the oud and rebaba, are also commonly used.[275]

Sport

Main article: Sport in Qatar

Lusail Sports Arena

Association football is the most popular sport in Qatar, both in terms of players and spectators.[277] Shortly after the Qatar Football Association became affiliated with FIFA in 1970, one of the country's earliest international accolades came in 1981 when the Qatar national under-20 team's emerged as runners-up to West Germany in that year's edition of the FIFA World Youth Championship after being defeated 4–0 in the final. At the senior level, Qatar has played host to two editions of the AFC Asian Cup; the first coming being the 9th edition in 1988 and the second being the 15th edition held in 2011.[278] For the first time in the country's history, the Qatar national football team won the AFC Asian Cup in the 2019 edition hosted in the UAE, beating Japan 3–1 in the final. They won all seven of their matches, conceding only a single goal throughout the tournament.[279]

On 2 December 2010, Qatar won their bid to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup, despite never previously qualifying for the FIFA World Cup Finals.[280] Local organisers built 7 new stadiums and expanded 1 existing stadium for this event.[281][282] Qatar's winning bid for the 2022 World Cup was greeted enthusiastically in the Persian Gulf region as it was the first time a country in the Middle East had been selected to host the tournament. However, the bid has been embroiled in much controversy, including allegations of bribery and interference in the investigation of the alleged bribery. European football associations have also objected to the 2022 World Cup being held in Qatar for a variety of reasons, from the impact of warm temperatures on players' fitness, to the disruption it might cause in European domestic league calendars should the event be rescheduled to take place during winter.[283][284] In May 2014, Qatari football official Mohammed bin Hammam was accused of making payments totalling £3m to officials in return for their support for the Qatar bid.[285] However, a FIFA inquiry into the bidding process in November 2014 cleared Qatar of any wrongdoing.[286]

The Guardian, a British national daily newspaper, produced a short documentary named "Abuse and exploitation of migrant workers preparing emirate for 2022".[287] A 2014 investigation by The Guardian reports that migrant workers who have been constructing luxurious offices for the organisers of the 2022 World Cup have not been paid in over a year, and are now "working illegally from cockroach-infested lodgings."[288] For 2014, Nepalese migrants involved in constructing infrastructure for the 2022 World Cup died at a rate of one every two days.[289] The Qatar 2022 organising committee have responded to various allegations by claiming that hosting the World Cup in Qatar would act as a "catalyst for change" in the region.[290] According to a February 2021 article in The Guardian, some 6,500 migrant construction workers have died.[291]

Qatar was estimated to host a football fanbase of 1.6 million for the 2022 FIFA World Cup 2022. However, the construction work in country was expected to only take the available 37,000 hotel rooms to 70,000 by the end of 2021. In December 2019, the Qatari World Cup officials approached the organizers of the Glastonbury Festival in England and the Coachella Festival in the US, to plan huge desert campsites for thousands of football fans. The World Cup campsites on the outskirts were reported to have licensed bars, restaurants, entertainment and washing facilities. Moreover, two cruise ships were also reserved as temporary floating accommodations for nearly 40,000 people during the tournament.[292]

Though football is the most popular sport, other team sports have experienced considerable success at senior level. In 2015, the national handball team emerged as runners-up to France in the World Men's Handball Championship as hosts, however the tournament was marred by numerous controversies regarding the host nation and its team.[293] Further, in 2014, Qatar won the world championship in men's 3x3 basketball.[294]

Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex in Doha hosted the WTA Tour Championships in women's tennis between 2008 and 2010. Doha holds the WTA Premier tournament Qatar Ladies Open annually. Since 2002, Qatar has hosted the annual Tour of Qatar, a cycling race in six stages. Every February, riders are racing on the roads across Qatar's flat land for six days. Each stage covers a distance of more than 100 km, though the time trial usually is a shorter distance. Tour of Qatar is organised by the Qatar Cycling Federation for professional riders in the category of Elite Men.[295]

The Qatar Army Skydiving Team has several different skydiving disciplines placing among the top nations in the world. The Qatar National Parachute team performs annually during Qatar's National Day and at other large events, such as the 2015 World Handball Championship.[296] Doha four times was the host of the official FIVB Volleyball Men's Club World Championship and three times host FIVB Volleyball Women's Club World Championship. Doha one time Host Asian Volleyball Championship.[297]

On 3 September 2020, the Education City Stadium hosted its first-ever official match, where the local clubs Al Sadd SC and Al Kharaitiyat SC contested the season-opener of the 2020–21 Qatar Stars League.[298]

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