Domestic campaigns across the globe will soon pause for a World Cup like no other, with Qatar 2022 the first to be held in November and December.
Qatar is a controversial selection for Fifa’s major tournament, and the nation’s human rights abuses remain at the forefront of people’s minds in the build-up to the event.
The decision to move the World Cup from its traditional summer slot has also proven to be contentious, with the Premier League and Championship among the leagues set for an extended winter break.
The final Premier League match before the six-week hiatus sees Fulham host Manchester United on Sunday 13 November, while Burnley against Blackburn Rovers brings down the curtain before the Championship interval.
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The tournament starts on Sunday 20 November, giving players little more than a week between their last league match and first World Cup game.
After Qatar play Ecuador, which was moved to a day earlier so the hosts could open proceedings, both England and Wales are in action on the second day, Monday 21 November.
Why England face an unlikely ‘Group of Death’
By i Northern Football Correspondent Mark Douglas
So here’s a thing: England have landed the World Cup’s group of death.
For those who breathed a sigh of relief when the draw for Qatar 2022 was finalised in April, it might come as something of a surprise.
The gut feeling then was that opportunity flowed from Group B and Gareth Southgate’s big tournament luck had kicked in again.
But totting up the Fifa rankings of England, the USA, Wales and Iran confirms it is the toughest collection of teams in the tournament.
Read Mark Douglas’ full analysis here
England face Iran and Wales take on USA in Group B, with the match-ups falling just eight days after the Premier League and Championship are halted.
That gives managers Gareth Southgate and Rob Page precious little time to work with their squads, although most nations are in the same boat. The MLS season will have concluded in the US by then, but their squad is a mix of home and European-based players and so will be impacted too.
Managers must submit their finalised 26-man squads by 13 November, and so that brings us neatly onto a major talking point heading into this mid-season World Cup.
Could injuries decide this World Cup?
Player welfare has been at the heart of managers’ frustrations with the winter World Cup, as it has led to a packed schedule either side of the tournament.
The Premier League started earlier than normal, but still despite the six-week break it is still set to finish by the end of May, making for more midweek matches.
What Premier League managers have said
Liverpool’s Jurgen Klopp: “When I start talking about it, I get really angry… It is like with the climate. We all know it has to change but nobody is saying what we have to do. There must be one meeting where they all talk to each other, and the only subject should be the most important part of this game – the players.”
Tottenham’s Antonio Conte: “In my opinion the whole football environment should have complained at the right time, not now. I think that after this experience should be good then we say, ‘we did it once, now let’s continue to do it like the past’.”
Add to that the fact the Champions League, Europa League and Europa Conference League group stages are all concluding by early November, and you have a handful of Premier League clubs often playing twice a week – for example, Manchester United’s schedule of nine matches in October is their busiest October in the club’s history.
And so, although injuries are commonplace in the sport and have led to heart-breaking absences from major tournaments of yesteryear, the extra strain of the 2022-23 season appears to be taking its toll ahead of Qatar.
Reece James is unlikely to play for England at the World Cup, having been given an eight-week recovery estimation after picking up a knee injury in mid-October. Kyle Walker is another defender facing a race against time, having undergone groin surgery recently.
England could also be without Kalvin Phillips, and so Southgate may count himself fortunate if injury concerns remain countable on just the one hand with a handful of Premier League rounds to go before the World Cup.
Elsewhere, Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp confirmed Diogo Jota would miss the World Cup after the Portugal forward was stretchered off against Manchester City on 16 October, while a tearful Richarlison left Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on crutches on 15 October and is, therefore, a worry for favourites Brazil.
Reigning world champions France will be without N’Golo Kante, who has a hamstring injury and could be out for a few months, with Paul Pogba an uncertainty having not played this season at Juventus.
His club team-mate Angel Di Maria will also hope to recover in time to represent Argentina, having hobbled off in tears during Juventus’ shock Champions League defeat to Maccabi Haifa on 11 October.
This list will grow, no doubt, and even once the World Cup starts, a condensed schedule makes it inevitable that more injuries will be picked up along the way – a factor which could dictate which flight the trophy is carried onto after the final on 18 December.
World Cup 2022 groups
- Group A – Qatar, Ecuador, Senegal and Netherlands
- Group B – England, Iran, USA and Wales
- Group C – Argentina, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Poland
- Group D – France, Australia, Denmark and Tunisia
- Group E – Spain, Costa Rica, Germany and Japan
- Group F – Belgium, Canada, Morocco and Croatia
- Group G – Brazil, Serbia, Switzerland and Cameroon
- Group H – Portugal, Ghana, Uruguay and South Korea
World Cup 2022 schedule and dates
All times GMT
Sunday 20 November
- Group A: Qatar vs Ecuador (Al Bayt Stadium; 7pm)
Monday 21 November
- Group B: England vs Iran (Khalifa International Stadium; 1pm)
- Group A: Senegal vs Netherlands (Al Thumama Stadium; 4pm)
- Group B: USA vs Wales (Ahmed bin Ali Stadium; 7pm)
Tuesday 22 November
- Group C: Argentina vs Saudi Arabia (Lusail Iconic Stadium; 10am)
- Group D: Denmark vs Tunisia (Education City Stadium; 1pm)
- Group C: Mexico vs Poland (Stadium 974; 4pm)
- Group D: France vs Australia (Al Janoub Stadium; 7pm)
Wednesday 23 November
- Group F: Morocco vs Croatia (Al Bayt Stadium; 10am)
- Group E: Germany vs Japan (Khalifa International Stadium; 1pm)
- Group E: Spain vs Costa Rica (Al Thumama Stadium; 4pm)
- Group F: Belgium vs Canada (Ahmed bin Ali Stadium; 7pm)
Thursday 24 November
- Group G: Switzerland vs Cameroon (Al Janoub Stadium; 10am)
- Group H: Uruguay vs South Korea (Education City Stadium; 1pm)
- Group H: Portugal vs Ghana (Stadium 974; 4pm)
- Group G: Brazil vs Serbia (Lusail Iconic Stadium; 7pm)
Friday 25 November
- Group B: Wales vs Iran (Ahmed bin Ali Stadium; 10am)
- Group A: Qatar vs Senegal (Al Thumama Stadium; 1pm)
- Group A: Netherlands vs Ecuador (Khalifa International Stadium; 4pm)
- Group B: England vs USA (Al Bayt Stadium; 7pm)
Saturday 26 November
- Group C: Tunisia vs Australia (Al Janoub Stadium; 10am)
- Group C: Poland vs Saudi Arabia (Education City Stadium; 1pm)
- Group D: France vs Denmark (Stadium 974; 4pm)
- Group C: Argentina vs Mexico (Lusail Iconic Stadium; 7pm)
Sunday 27 November
- Group E: Japan vs Costa Rica (Ahmed bin Ali Stadium; 10am)
- Group F: Belgium vs Morocco (Al Thumama Stadium; 1pm)
- Group F: Croatia vs Canada (Khalifa International Stadium; 4pm)
- Group E: Spain vs Germany (Al Bayt Stadium; 7pm)
Monday 28 November
- Group G: Cameroon vs Serbia (Al Janoub Stadium; 10am)
- Group G: South Korea vs Ghana (Education City Stadium; 1pm)
- Group H: Brazil vs Switzerland (Stadium 974; 4pm)
- Group H: Portugal vs Uruguay (Lusail Iconic Stadium; 7pm)
Tuesday 29 November
- Group A: Netherlands vs Qatar (Al Bayt Stadium; 3pm)
- Group A: Ecuador vs Senegal (Khalifa International Stadium; 3pm)
- Group B: Wales vs England (Ahmed bin Ali Stadium; 7pm)
- Group B: Iran vs USA (Al Thumama Stadium; 7pm)
Wednesday 30 November
- Group D: Australia vs Denmark (Al Janoub Stadium; 3pm)
- Group D: Tunisia vs France (Education City Stadium; 3pm)
- Group C: Poland vs Argentina (Stadium 974; 7pm)
- Group C: Saudi Arabia vs Mexico (Lusail Iconic Stadium; 7pm)
Thursday 1 December
- Group F: Croatia vs Belgium (Ahmed bin Ali Stadium; 3pm)
- Group F: Canada vs Morocco (Al Thumama Stadium; 3pm)
- Group E: Costa Rica vs Germany (Al Bayt Stadium; 7pm)
- Group E: Japan vs Spain (Khalifa International Stadium; 7pm)
Friday 2 December
- Group G: South Korea vs Portugal (Education City Stadium; 3pm)
- Group G: Ghana vs Uruguay (Al Janoub Stadium; 3pm)
- Group H: Serbia vs Switzerland (Stadium 974; 7pm)
- Group H: Cameroon vs Brazil (Lusail Iconic Stadium; 7pm)
Round of 16
Saturday 3 December
- 49: Winners of Group A vs Runners-up of Group B (Khalifa International Stadium; 3pm)
- 50: Winners of Group C vs Runners-up of Group D (Ahmed bin Ali Stadium; 7pm)
Sunday 4 December
- 52: Winners of Group D vs Runners-up of Group C (Al Thumama Stadium; 3pm)
- 51: Winners of Group B vs Runners-up of Group A (Al Bayt Stadium; 7pm)
Monday 5 December
- 53: Winners of Group E vs Runners-up of Group F (Al Janoub Stadium; 3pm)
- 54: Winners of Group G vs Runners-up of Group H (Stadium 974; 7pm)
Tuesday 6 December
- 55: Winners of Group F vs Runners-up of Group E (Education City Stadium; 3pm)
- 56: Winners of Group H vs Runners-up of Group G (Lusail Iconic Stadium; 7pm)
Quarter-finals
Friday 9 December
- 58: Winners of 53 vs Winners of 54 (Education City Stadium; 3pm)
- 57: Winners of 49 vs Winners of 50 (Lusail Iconic Stadium; 7pm)
Saturday 10 December
- 60: Winners of 55 vs Winners of 56 (Al Thumama Stadium; 3pm)
- 59: Winners of 51 vs Winners of 52 (Al Bayt Stadium; 7pm)
Semi-finals
Tuesday 13 December
- 61: Winners of 57 vs Winners of 58 (Lusail Iconic Stadium; 7pm)
Wednesday 14 December
- 62: Winners of 59 vs Winners of 60 (Al Bayt Stadium; 7pm)
When is the third-place play-off?
Saturday 17 December at Khalifa International Stadium – 3pm kick-off.
When is the World Cup final?
Sunday 18 December at Lusail Iconic Stadium – 3pm kick-off.
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