Frequently Asked Questions

When is the World Cup?

Men's: 2022 Qatar

The 2022 Qatar World Cup takes place November 21, 2022 to December 18, 2022.

Women's: 2023 Australia & New Zealand

Exact dates haven't been locked in BUT we know it will be hosted by Australia and New Zealand; however, it will definitely take place during a reserved window of July 10, 2023 to August 20, 2023.

How many teams participate?

Men's: 2022 Qatar

This next version will consist of 32 teams, which has been the norm since 1998.  However, 2026 between USA, Canada & Mexico will have 48 teams for the first time ever.

Women's: 2023 Australia & New Zealand

For the first time ever, 2023 will consist of 32 teams after a very successful 2019 edition in France with 24 teams.

How do teams qualify?

Men's: 2022 Qatar

Each edition is slightly different.  With 32 teams, the typical breakdown is:

  • Africa = 5 teams
  • Asia = 4.5 teams (including Qatar)
  • Europe = 13 teams
  • North & Central America, Caribbean = 3.5 teams
  • Oceania = 0.5 teams
  • South America = 4.5 teams

How does 1/2 a team qualify?  Well, that means the team filling the “0.5” spot enters into a home and away playoff against another region with a 0.5 allocation.  For example, in CONCACAF, the 4th place team could play South America's 5th place team in a playoff and only one of those team makes it to the final stages.

FIFA also breaks down every team in each region quite well.

Need something other than FIFA?  ESPN also breaks it down well.

Women's: 2023 Australia & New Zealand

This is still in discussions but the process starts in 2021.

How did the hosts get selected?

Men's: 2022 Qatar

This is an incredibly loaded question.  I can tell you that Qatar was selected by the FIFA Executive Committee via a voting process on December 2, 2010.  However, you may want to read a few articles to see how loaded this question really is:

Women's: 2023 Australia & New Zealand

You can get a snapshot of this here.

Tell me everything you know about Match Tickets!

Men's: 2022 Qatar

Not a question but, you should check out our page about Ticket Acquisition.

We discuss how to actually purchase tickets, the prices, timing of when they go on sale, etc.

Women's: 2023 TBD

We'll post updates as soon as we know more.

Is it safe to attend the World Cup?

Is any place ever 100% safe? The last few men's tournaments (Russia, Brazil, South Africa) have been characterized as “unsafe” destinations by western media and 2022 in Qatar will be no different.

Did some people run into problems with crime in the past? Yes.  Did the vast majority of people walk away with a new perspective on life, memories that will last forever and an incredible adventure? Yes.

My belief is the World Cup is one of the safest times you could ever visit a new country and the entire world is watching out for your well-being.  Even in the face of adversity and crime, there could be silver linings.  I remember meeting a family in South Africa that put thousands of dollars down towards their lodging only to find out upon arrival in Johannesburg that they'd been scammed.  Completely distraught, a group of locals jumped in to save the day and arrange lodging for free (granted, they had technically spent thousands already).

There's truth in every story and vantage point but you can't believe everything you read or hear.

Where/How do I find lodging?

There are SO MANY options that it is hard to provide a definitive guideline.  That said, check out our post on lodging for Qatar 2022 to get some ideas.  We try to help you think of inside the box and outside the box options.

What are Fan Fests?

Fan Fests are essentially individual street parties that are “officially” FIFA street parties.

You go through security to enter, are greeted by tens of thousands of fans, massive televisions and long lines for food, drink and toilets.

We cover some interesting info about Fan Fests on the site already but typically, each host city contains a Fan Fest and it is an alternative way to join the chaos without having an actual match ticket.  In our first ever World Cup trip (Germany 2006), we only made it to Fan Fests, bars and restaurants to experience game day atmosphere…and it was amazing.

Do I need a special ID to attend matches?

We thoroughly cover a concept called Fan IDs which were used in Russia 2018 for the first time.

Short answer – for Russia 2018, it was required to have a Fan ID.  It also served as your visa into the country.

I imagine that each tournament gets stricter and stricter with the rules but you never know.

For the Women's Tournament, we have not heard of this concept.

How much $$$ will I need to attend a World Cup?

Well, it all depends on your personal tastes, length of stay, whether or not you can utilize travel awards, etc.

We do cover this topic and have a very useful infographic regarding Russia 2018 to provide some guidance.

Will Qatar sell beer and alcohol in 2022?

This is a massive point for many. In 2018, I'll never forget the site of Mexican fans completely dominating the area of Moscow in front of the Red Square til the wee hours of the morning – and to the delight of really everyone.  There were cheers – there were songs – and there was also plenty of dancing.  At the center of it all – oh yes, alcohol.  It isn't necessary to create lifelong memories but there are plenty of people that can't imagine a month long soccer party without.

And for that group of people, Quartz has good news to report about alcohol sales and prices.  Time will tell but we're guessing there will be a workable compromise; especially given the fact that a beer vendor is a MAJOR sponsor of the World Cup.

Looking for a quick answer to a question you have about FIFA World Cups? Ever wondered how much tickets cost, how much money you should budget to attend, hints on lodging, etc? We'll try our best to list them out below.  

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