The FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Winner’s Trophy (Photo: FIFA).
We’re counting down the days to the start of the 2022 Soccer World Cup which will be held in Qatar from 20 November to 18 December. It will be the first World Cup to be held in the Arab world and Qatar’s selection was marred by allegations of corruption as it beat out Australia, the USA, South Korea, and Japan to win the right to host. Qatar has faced strong criticism due to the treatment of foreign workers involved in the preparation and is seen to have high operational risk. 6 of the 8 stadiums to be used are in the city of Doha which is great for the players but how will the city cope with the influx of people? Given that Qatar is a Muslim nation and hence alcohol is prohibited, World Cup organizers have created “sobering up” zones for intoxicated fans to avoid arrest. Fans are supposed to stay in the zone until they are sober.
The World Cup is the world’s biggest sporting event with an audience of 3.6 billion at the 2018 World Cup in Russia. This World Cup is projected to have 5 billion viewers. That’s 2/3 of the global population! The World Cup is a soccer tournament held every 4 years. 32 teams compete from all over the world for the prestigious FIFA World Cup trophy. Given that the Northwood soccer team has players from 20 countries, there is a lot of excitement amongst the team. The World Cup is a perfect opportunity for all students from diverse cultures to come together and watch the World’s biggest sporting event.
Leo Doyle a Sophomore at Northwood expressed, “I can’t wait for the World Cup to start. I will personally be going for Japan (because Ireland didn’t qualify). This will be my first experience watching the World Cup away from home, but I am sure that watching it in the living room with people from all over the world will be fantastic.”
For many students, this will be their first time watching the World Cup at Northwood. The Northwood community is going to try its best to make the Northwood World Cup experience one to remember. There will be games streamed in the living room and anyone can go along and watch.
Ahmed Ganainy a junior here at Northwood said, “I am very disappointed Egypt wasn’t able to qualify for the World Cup; however, I will be supporting Argentina. This is Lionel Messi’s last World Cup. He is the greatest soccer player of all time and deserves to win the biggest accolade in soccer for his country.” There are several people at Northwood whose countries haven’t qualified for the 2022 World Cup; nevertheless, everyone will enjoy watching soccer at its best.
Lohkoah Paye is an American Junior at Northwood and is excited to witness arguably the greatest American soccer team of all time. He believes, “This American team is the best I have ever seen. We have an easy group, meaning we can easily get through to the knockout stages. Some of the key players to watch on the American team will be the ‘Lebron James of Soccer,’ Christian Pulisic.” America has a lot of players in the English Premier League and other international leagues.
The favorite to win this tournament is the mighty Brazil, who has the most world cup wins with 5. Brazil has a scary squad, led by the likes of Neymar Jr, Vinicius Jr, and Alisson. France won the last World Cup in 2018 and is another favorite. France, however, must overcome the World Cup curse. For the last 4 World Cups, the team that has won the previous World Cup has been knocked out of the group stage. The World Cup curse is infamous. Fans think the curse will be lifted after France make it out of its group. France is in a group with Australia, Denmark, and Tunisia.
Australia, my home country is the true underdog. Australian soccer fans are saying that it is the weakest Socceroo Squad ever. Australia has found it hard to replace the likes of past legends like Mark Viduka, Harry Kewell, and Tim Cahill.
Key players to watch for this tournament are Harry Kane (ENG), Kylian Mbappe (FRA), Kevin De Bruyne (BEL), and Ballon Dor winner Karim Benzema (FRA).
This World Cup will be extremely entertaining, and Northwood encourages everyone to come along and watch the games or else you will have to wait until 2026. The World Cup matches will be at 5 am, 8 am, 11 am, and 2 pm ET. They will be streamed on Fubo TV and Peacock in the living room. So come on down and watch and wear your team colors! This will be a World Cup to remember so make sure you’re part of the action!
