5 key things await as FIFA 2022 World Cup kicks off

Dar es Salaam. The 2022 FIFA World Cup is ready to kickoff in Qatar with 32 teams competing for the most prized and valued trophy in the world.

The host Qatar will face South America’s Ecuador in the opening match of the largest football festival to be held at Al Bayt Stadium from 1900 EAT, with few expectations of the Middle East nation defying the odds and reaching the top stages of the competition.

A total of 831 players from different parts of the world have been registered to represent their respective nations with both of them having similar dreams of going home with the trophy.

As Qatar looks to be ready to host the showpiece, here are five things that football fans around the world are actually thinking about the FIFA 2022 World Cup.

Messi or Ronaldo Question

There is no  doubt that Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are the greatest footballers to ever grace this generation with stats, records and the number of both individual and club trophies prove that.

Despite clinching different trophies with their respective countries, each is yet to handle the FIFA World Cup trophy as some top footballers did previously.

With both heading to the end of their football career, the world actually wishes to see who will finish the race with a good tune between the Portugal and Argentinean stars?

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Europe and South America Dominance

Since the inauguration of the FIFA World Cup in 1930, only eight teams from two continents (Europe and South America) have lifted the trophy in 21 different editions.

Italy, Germany, France, England and Spain for Europe and South America were well represented by Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina respectively.

Basing on the individuals who compose the squads of the participating teams and the historical backgrounds of the tournament, South America and Europe again are favourite to dominate the football showpiece in Qatar in comparison to Africa, North America, Asia and  Australia.

Make or break for African teams

Five teams will represent the African Continent in Qatar, which are Senegal, Tunisia, Morocco, Cameroon and Ghana with each one having already participated in different previous editions, leaving them with huge experience of it.

Unfortunately, the only level of achievement that African teams have reached in the FIFA World Cup is the quarter-final stage, beginning with Cameroon in 1990, Senegal in 2002 and Ghana in 2010.

The 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar will be a good opportunity for African teams to defy the odds and write new history or to disappoint again.

Surprise packages

During the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia, Croatia defied the odds and rose to the final stage of the biggest football showpiece and went on to be beaten 4-2 by France ‘Les Blues’ although the hosts also made a surprise call after sailing up to the quarter-final stage.

The situation could be similar to that of 2002, when one of the hosts, South Korea, went through the semi-final stage where they lost to Germany despite few expectations for them to rise in front of the giant football nations.

Brazil, Argentina, France, Belgium, England, Spain, Germany, Portugal and are favourites to dominate the show in Qatar,  but people should be aware of surprises that can happen because of the early elimination of some giants and the unexpected rise of minors.

The rise of new stars

There are many players that have established themselves at the top for what they do at both national team and club level and they will actually attract the attention of football fans across the world during the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

But with the inclusion of many young stars in the squads of 32 participating teams in Qatar, we should expect the coming into fame for some of the young footballers due to their superb performance that they will show during the competition.

An example of the young talents who are expected to use the FIFA World Cup as the stepping stone to raise them into prominence are Ansu Fati, Hanibal Mejri, Youssoufa Moukoukou, Jude Bellingham, Akram Afif and others with pedigree similar to them