International Football
Factbox: World Cup groups 2022: full list of qualified teams and guide to each group
Following are the eight groups for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, which will be held in Qatar from Nov. 20-Dec. 18.
There will be a round-robin format in the group stage when each of the 32 teams play three matches. Teams will get three points for a win and one for a draw.
The top two in each group advance to the last 16.
The knockout rounds will feature one-off matches, which can go to extra time and then penalties to decide the winner.
GROUP A
Qatar (hosts)
Ecuador
Senegal
Netherlands
The Dutch are favourites to advance from Group A as they chase a maiden World Cup title. Louis van Gaal’s side will be fired up after failing to qualify for the last edition in Russia four years ago.
The Netherlands will expect a strong challenge from Senegal but the Africa Cup of Nations champions are sweating on the fitness of their talismanic forward Sadio Mane, who sustained an injury playing for Bayern Munich.
GROUP B
England
Iran
United States
Wales
England, the 2018 semi-finalists and last year’s European Championship runners-up, will be expected to come through the group but their recent poor form means they could face some tricky tests, especially against Wales and the United States.
GROUP C
Argentina
Saudi Arabia
Mexico
Poland
Argentina will look to build on their Copa America triumph last year with World Cup success and all eyes will be on 35-year-old Lionel Messi in what is likely to be the Paris St Germain forward’s last chance to become a world champion.
Poland will need Robert Lewandowski to be in his usual scoring form take them into the knockout rounds, with Mexico likely to compete with them for second place in the group.
GROUP D
France
Australia
Denmark
Tunisia
France have been hit hard by injuries heading into the tournament, with the likes of midfielders Paul Pogba and N’Golo Kante missing out. Didier Deschamps’ side face a daunting task to emulate Italy and Brazil by winning back-to-back titles.
Denmark will also target a deep run having been boosted by the return of key midfielder Christian Eriksen, who has fully recovered from the heart attack he suffered during Euro 2020.
Australia may need some good fortune if they are to get out of the group after an underwhelming qualifying campaign.
GROUP E
Spain
Costa Rica
Germany
Japan
Four-time winners Germany are looking to make amends after a shock first-round exit in 2018 but are in a difficult group, with 2010 champions Spain likely to provide their biggest test.
Spain have struggled in the last two editions after their golden generation won the country’s first World Cup but their young talented side are capable of taking the next step.
GROUP F
Belgium
Canada
Morocco
Croatia
Belgium will be fancied to advance but a lot could depend on how fast injured striker Romelu Lukaku and playmaker Eden Hazard — who has struggled for regular playing time at Real Madrid this season — hit their stride in Qatar.
In-form Croatia are likely to join them at the expense of Canada and Morocco, with playmaker Luka Modric still as pivotal to the team as he was in their run to the final four years ago.
GROUP G
Brazil
Serbia
Switzerland
Cameroon
Brazil are the bookmakers’ favourites and the five-times champions will look to dominate the group having peaked at the right time in qualifying, with a new generation of players easing the burden on forward Neymar.
While Switzerland may not be genuine title contenders, they have proven to be dangerous opponents in the past and have the quality to make it out of the group.
GROUP H
Portugal
Ghana
Uruguay
South Korea
Portugal, led by Cristiano Ronaldo in the twilight of his brilliant career, are expected to get out of the group along with Uruguay but Ghana and South Korea can cause upsets.
-Reuters
Former Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel has been named the new head coach of the England national team, the country’s Football Association said in a statement on Wednesday.
The German, who is England’s third foreign manager, after Sweden’s Sven-Goran Eriksson and Italian Fabio Capello, will be assisted by Englishman Anthony Barry, the statement added.
“We are thrilled to have hired Thomas Tuchel, one of the best coaches in the world and Anthony Barry who is one of the best English coaches to support him,” FA CEO Mark Bullingham said.
Tuchel replaces Lee Carsley, England’s under-21 manager, who has been in temporary charge since the resignation of Gareth Southgate after England’s defeat by Spain in the Euro 2024 final in July.
-Reuters
German Thomas Tuchel has been appointed head coach of the England national team on Wednesday.
Born: Aug. 29, 1973 in Krumbach, Germany.
PLAYING CAREER
* Tuchel played for his local club TSV Krumbach, before moving to FC Augsburg’s academy at the age of 15.
* He never played for Augsburg’s senior side and joined German second division team Stuttgarter Kickers in 1992.
* After eight league appearances for Kickers, Tuchel moved to fourth-tier SSV Ulm.
* Tuchel made 69 league appearances for Ulm as a central defender before he was forced to retire in 1998 at the age of 25 due to a knee injury.
COACHING CAREER
* Tuchel began his coaching career with a youth team role at VfB Stuttgart in 2000, working with future Germany internationals Mario Gomez and Holger Badstuber.
* He returned to Augsburg and took charge of their reserve team for the 2007-08 season.
* Tuchel was appointed Mainz 05 manager in 2009, replacing compatriot Juergen Klopp.
* He guided Mainz to Bundesliga stability during his five-year stint at the club, gaining plaudits for his team’s high energy, attacking style of play.
* Tuchel took over from Klopp as Borussia Dortmund coach in 2015.
* He led Dortmund to a 2-1 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt in the 2017 German Cup final. He was sacked by Dortmund three days later.
* Tuchel joined Paris St Germain in 2018 on a two-year contract, replacing Unai Emery.
* He won two Ligue 1 titles, including a domestic quadruple in his second season, and guided the club to their first Champions League final, where they lost 1-0 to Bayern Munich.
* Tuchel was sacked by PSG on Christmas Eve in 2020, despite the club finishing top of their Champions League group and sitting third in the Ligue 1 table.
* He was named Chelsea manager in January 2021 on an initial 18-month contract following the dismissal of Frank Lampard.
* Tuchel revived the team’s Premier League season and guided the London club to the Champions League final, where they beat Manchester City. Chelsea also won the Super Cup and Club World Cup.
* Chelsea sacked Tuchel in September 2022 following a shock 1-0 defeat at Dinamo Zagreb in their opening Champions League group game.
* Bayern Munich appointed Tuchel to succeed Julian Nagelsmann in March last year.
* Bayern decided to let Tuchel go at the end of the 2023-24 season despite a contract until 2025. Tuchel steered Bayern to the Bundesliga title in 2022-23, but they finished the last campaign without any silverware for the first time in more than a decade.
* Tuchel will become England’s third foreign manager after Sweden’s Sven-Goran Eriksson and Italian Fabio Capello.
* Tuchel will take over the team in January ahead of the qualification campaign for the 2026 World Cup.
-Reuters
Wolverhampton Wanderers forward Mateus Mane has become hot property after Portugal named the 17-year-old in their Under-18 squad on Friday, one day after England included him in their squad.
Mane was called up for a second successive England youth camp by coach Liam Bramley before the team travel to Marbella for a four-team tournament this month.
Mane is eligible for both teams having played for the Portugal Under-17 side last season. As the Under-18 team is a non-UEFA age group, both nations are entitled to call the player up.
He made his England international debut last month against the Portugal Under-18 side who have named Mane in their squad for a four-nation tournament this month.
With both tournaments running concurrently, Mane can only play for one team and Wolves and England confirmed he would feature in Bramley’s side.
Reuters has contacted Portugal’s football association for clarification.
While players with multiple nationalities have played for more than one country if they are eligible, they are not allowed to switch allegiances at senior level – unless they have played only in friendly matches for the first country.
-Reuters
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