Eight stadiums are ready in Qatar and tickets for the World Cup have been on sale for a week. Now the mission to snap up the remaining tournament slots begins again.
With qualifying disrupted by the pandemic, fixtures over the next week for teams in the Americas and Asia have been squeezed.
That means Europe’s top leagues will have to take a mid-season break, even if the continent’s national teams are not playing until March, when the World Cup playoffs are held as scheduled.
The focus will then turn to the final tournament draw in Doha on 1 April, which will precede the intercontinental playoffs in June and complete the 32-team field for the Middle East’s first World Cup.
So far, 13 teams have qualified: Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Croatia, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Netherlands, Serbia, Spain, Switzerland and Qatar as hosts.
Here’s a look at the final stages of qualifying for the tournament, to be held from November 21 to December 18:
North and Central America and the Caribbean
An unusual January International window with a triple-header will be in a chilly wind at CONCACAF.
The United States hosts El Salvador on Thursday night in Columbus, Ohio, where the expected temperature for kickoff was 25 degrees (minus -4 Celsius). The US then travels to Hamilton, Ontario to play Canada on Sunday, and proceeds to complete the window against Honduras in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Looking for their first World Cup appearance since 1986, Canada have four of the remaining six matches on the road – with games in Honduras and El Salvador in this window between home meetings with the Americans.
The US, seeking a return to the World Cup after missing out on 2018, are second on 15 points after eight from 14 matches in the North and Central American and Caribbean region, one point behind Canada.
Mexico and Panama have 14 points each, followed by Costa Rica (nine), Jamaica (seven), El Salvador (six) and Honduras (three). The top three teams qualify and the fourth team advances to the playoffs against the Oceania champions, possibly against New Zealand.
The Americans are missing midfielder Gio Reyna, who was still in the opening qualifier in El Salvador on September 2 with a hamstring injury.
The Canadians are missing Bayern Munich star fullback Alfonso Davies, who trained in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on Monday. After testing positive for COVID-19, he has been isolated from myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart muscle.
South America
In addition to last-placed Venezuela, seven other CONMEBOL countries are still struggling to join Qatar, joining Brazil and Argentina, with four qualifiers remaining.
Third-placed Ecuador will beat Brazil on Thursday to move closer to one of four direct-qualification spots that will not play Neymar. Peru and Colombia are both six points behind Ecuador in their fourth and fifth clashes on Friday.
Another point sitting down are Chile, which host Lionel Messi-relaxed Argentina on Thursday, and Uruguay, which are ninth in Paraguay in Diego Alonso’s first match after the firing of Oscar Tabarez. Bolivia plays Venezuela on Friday with two points separating the eighth-placed team from the qualification places.
After qualifying for CONMEBOL in March, a fifth-place team could beat an Asian team in the Intercontinental Playoffs in June for a place in the tournament.
Asia
Iran will qualify for the third consecutive World Cup by defeating Iraq on Thursday. South Korea, who are without the injured Son Heung-min, could seal a spot from Group A in next week with their doubleheaders – against Lebanon and Syria – ahead of the two remaining qualifiers in March.
But after playing four consecutive World Cups, without a win in three matches, Australia’s qualification from the second group is in limbo. If the Socceros miss out on two automatic qualification places by finishing third in Group B, they are required to advance to the Intercontinental Playoffs against the South American opposition, competing in the playoffs against the third-placed team from Group A – currently the United Arab Emirates. Will have to take in June.
See below, Australia have a four-point lead over Oman. But second place is with Australia just one point behind Japan, who take on China and Saudi Arabia next week. Australia play Vietnam, who are on zero points, on Thursday, and Oman on Tuesday, before closing Group B against current frontrunners Saudi Arabia and Japan in March.
The UAE, which qualified for their only World Cup in 1990, plays last-placed Syria and Iran the following week, trying to avoid being overtaken by Lebanon, who are one point behind, and Iraq, who are one point behind. The point is behind.
Africa
With the African Cup of Nations currently staged in the continent, Africa’s five World Cup representatives will not be decided until the playoffs in March featuring 10 group winners.
Liverpool teammates Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane will clash as Egypt and Senegal were drawn together, meaning neither country will contest a second consecutive World Cup. Ghana and Nigeria have a meeting, both of which have failed to reach the African Cup quarter-finals.
Standing in the way of a World Cup spot for African Cup quarterfinalists and hosts Cameroon is Algeria, who were knocked out of the continental showpiece in the group stage last week with one point from three matches.
Morocco, whose focus is now on the last eight African Cups, will play at home and away from Congo in March. Tunisia will also be expected to become African champions before the playoff against Mali.
Europe
It is now a couple of weeks for the European teams, with their playoffs not until March, to determine the 13-nation continent’s last three entrants for Qatar.
The European playoffs featured 10 teams that finished second in their qualifying groups with the two teams – Austria and the Czech Republic – having won the Nations League groups last year.
Italy and Portugal, the current and previous European champions, are in the same qualifying playoff bracket, meaning at least one will fail to qualify for next year’s tournament. Four-time world champions Italy, which failed to qualify for Russia in 2018, will take on North Macedonia at home first in the playoff semi-finals in March. The bracket winner will play in either Portugal or Turkey for a place in the World Cup.
To end the 24-year gap at the World Cup, Scotland will face Ukraine at home, and the winner will play either Wales or Austria in the final of their bracket. Wales’ only World Cup appearance was in 1958.
Russia will host Poland for the right to face either Sweden or the Czech Republic in their bracket final. Russia or Poland will host the final.
Oceania
Qualifying for Oceania will take place in a mini-tournament in Qatar in March, with New Zealand as the favorites to advance to the playoffs against a team from CONCACAF in June.
Ticket
Supporters have been able to vote for World Cup tickets since last week. But there are still no hotels available to book in Qatar until the official accommodation portal opens for business later in the year.
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