FIFA World Cup Wikipedia

Its name comes from the number of shipping containers used in its construction and Qatar's international dialing code. Some investigations found that Qatar sought an edge in securing hosting by hiring a former CIA officer turned private contractor, Kevin Chalker, to spy on rival bid teams and key football officials who picked the winner in 2010. Switzerland (quarter-finals 1954), Sweden (runners-up in 1958), Chile , South Korea , and Mexico (quarter-finals in 1970 and 1986) all have their best results when serving as hosts. So far, South Africa has been the only host nation to fail to advance beyond the first round. Since the second World Cup in 1934, qualifying tournaments have been held to thin the field for the final tournament. They are held within the six FIFA continental zones , overseen by their respective confederations.

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. 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. On 10 June 2015, Swiss authorities seized computer data from the offices of Sepp Blatter. 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.

Missed chances, especially by Romario, were aplenty over the 90 minutes and extra time, with the game later going to penalties. But nothing could stop the little man from glory as he scored a brace against Belgium to get into the final. Despite being marked closely the whole game against Germany, he set up Jorge Burruchaga with a brilliant pass to score the winner against Germany with seven minutes to go. Including the final where they scored four on a tired Italian side who played a colossal match against West Germany in the semi-final. After a late equaliser for the Germans, the game went into extra-time which is when the controversy began.

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. At the 1908 Summer Olympics in London, football became an official competition. Planned by The Football Association , England's football governing body, the event was for amateur players only and was regarded suspiciously as a show rather than a competition.

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. Red Roses set new record in style England’s women become the first test team to win 25 tests in a row after beating World Cup Wales 73-7 at Ashton Gate in Bristol on Wednesday. In the first tournament with VAR, France benefitted from a questionable decision in the final which awarded them a penalty after a harsh hand-ball.. Antoine Griezmann scored to put the side 2-1 up going into half time, in a moment that changed the complexion of the match.

Qatar has faced growing pressure over its hosting of the World Cup in relation to allegations over the role of former top football official Mohammed bin Hammam played in securing the bid. A former employee of the Qatar bid team alleged that several African officials were paid $1.5 million by Qatar. She retracted her claims, but later said that she was coerced to do so by Qatari bid officials.

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. 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. In December 2020, Qatar allowed the rainbow flags at the 2022 World Cup. Hassan Abdulla al Thawadi, chief executive of the country's 2022 World Cup bid, said that Qatar would permit alcohol consumption during the event, even though drinking in public is not permitted, as the country's legal system is based on Sharia.

Since then, collecting and trading stickers and cards has become part of the World Cup experience, especially for the younger generation. FIFA has also licensed World Cup video games since 1986, with Electronic Arts the current license holder.

The opening match will be played on November 21 and the final on December 18, 2022. The matches in the group stage will be decided later when the draw has been made among the qualifiers. Russia's participation was further thrown into doubt after the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. On 24 February, the three teams in Russia's qualifying path — Czech Republic, Poland, and Sweden — announced their unwillingness to play any matches in Russian territory. The boycott was extended on February 26 by Poland and Sweden to any qualifying games at all, and the same decision was made by the Czech Republic one day later. The official emblem was designed by Lisbon-based Brandia Central branding agency and unveiled on 3 September 2019 during simultaneous events at the Doha Tower, Katara Cultural Village Amphitheatre, Msheireb Downtown Doha, and Zubarah.

In October 2017, the International Trade Union Confederation said that Qatar had signed an agreement to improve the situation of more than 2 million migrant workers in the country. According to the ITUC, the agreement provided for establishing substantial reforms in labour system, including ending the Kafala system. The ITUC also stated that the agreement would positively affect the general situation of workers, especially those who work on the 2022 FIFA World Cup infrastructure projects.