2022 World Cup qualifying: All you need to know
Thursday 19 May 2022
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How it works, match dates, group stage, play-off format, finals.
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What is it?
The process by which UEFA's 55 member associations will be whittled down to 13 teams for the 2022 final tournament in Qatar.
How does it work?
There were two stages to qualifying:
Group stage
Teams were split into ten groups of five or six (the four teams who reached the 2021 UEFA Nations League finals – Belgium, France, Italy, Spain – were in the smaller groups). The ten group winners qualified for the World Cup.
Play-offs
The three remaining World Cup berths are being determined via the play-offs.
Who has qualified so far?
Ten teams qualified after topping their qualifying groups:
Belgium
Croatia
Denmark
England
France
Germany
Netherlands
Serbia
Spain
Switzerland
A further two teams have qualified after winning play-offs, with one last berth remaining:
Poland
Portugal
What is the play-off schedule?
Semi-finals – Thursday 24 March 2022
Path A: Wales 2-1 Austria
Path B: Sweden 1-0 Czech Republic (aet)
Path C: Italy 0-1 North Macedonia, Portugal 3-1 Turkey
Semi-final – Wednesday 1 June 2022
Path A: Scotland vs Ukraine
Finals – Tuesday 29 March 2022
Path B: Poland 2-0 Sweden
Path C: Portugal 2-0 North Macedonia
Final – Sunday 5 June 2022
Path A: Wales vs Scotland / Ukraine
What were the groups?
The groups were determined by a draw in Zurich on 7 December 2020.
Group A: Portugal, Serbia*, Republic of Ireland, Luxembourg, Azerbaijan
Group B: Spain*, Sweden, Greece, Georgia, Kosovo
Group C: Italy, Switzerland*, Northern Ireland, Bulgaria, Lithuania
Group D: France*, Ukraine, Finland, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kazakhstan
Group E: Belgium*, Wales, Czech Republic, Belarus, Estonia
Group F: Denmark*, Austria, Scotland, Israel, Faroe Islands, Moldova
Group G: Netherlands*, Turkey, Norway, Montenegro, Latvia, Gibraltar
Group H: Croatia*, Slovakia, Russia, Slovenia, Cyprus, Malta
Group I: England*, Poland, Hungary, Albania, Andorra, San Marino
Group J: Germany*, Romania, Iceland, North Macedonia, Armenia, Liechtenstein
*Group winners
All the fixturesWhen did the qualifying matches take place?
Matchday 1: 24–25 March 2021
Matchday 2: 27–28 March 2021
Matchday 3: 30–31 March 2021
Matchday 4: 1–2 September 2021
Matchday 5: 4–5 September 2021
Matchday 6: 7–8 September 2021
Matchday 7: 8–9 October 2021
Matchday 8: 11–12 October 2021
Matchday 9: 11–13 November 2021
Matchday 10: 14–16 November 2021
Play-offs: 24 & 29 March 2022, 1 & 5 June 2022
When is the 2022 World Cup?
The 22nd finals in Qatar will be the first World Cup not held in May, June, or July; the tournament is instead scheduled for a reduced timeframe between 21 November to 18 December. The World Cup draw took place on Friday 1 April in Doha, Qatar.
World Cup groups
Group A: Qatar (hosts), Ecuador, Senegal, Netherlands
Group B: England, Iran, United States, Wales / Scotland / Ukraine
Group C: Argentina, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Poland
Group D: France, Peru / Australia / United Arab Emirates, Denmark, Tunisia
Group E: Spain, Costa Rica / New Zealand, Germany, Japan
Group F: Belgium, Canada, Morocco, Croatia
Group G: Brazil, Serbia, Switzerland, Cameroon
Group H: Portugal, Ghana, Uruguay, Korea Republic