Qatar’s Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy/Handout via REUTERS
Coal will be produced here in 2022: Education City Stadium in the Qatari city of Al-Rayyan
A beautiful good morning! The World Cup qualification in kicking balls for boys is the actual World Cup. The choice in Qatar is only the final round, which is primarily about making money. Lots of coal. Have you ever wondered why FIFA, this huge transnational corporation, keeps holding conventions in tax havens?
The 2022 World Cup began on June 6th in Ulaanbaatar with the match between Mongolia and Brunei Darussalam (2-0). 46 nations of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) kick four participants out for the finals and a fifth team that gets a second chance in relegation games. 107 of 233 matches have already taken place, 46 percent of Asia’s World Cup qualifiers have taken place. For six teams, the dream was not a dream: Brunei, Macau, Laos, East Timor, Pakistan and Bhutan fell by the wayside.
In Africa, the World Cup started on September 4th with the match between Burundi and Tanzania (1: 1). 54 nations of the African Football Confederation (CAF) are kicking out five tickets for Qatar 2022. After 28 games, 14 nations have already been eliminated. Of a total of 211 finalists, 20 were able to take a shower early. Today (local time) the odyssey of the 35 Concacaf starters (associations of North and Central America and the Caribbean) begins. 3.5 places in the final round are reserved for them (three permanent places, a fourth a team can win in intercontinental decision-making encounters). Among other things, there is an exchange of blows between Guatemala and Cuba.
But the toughest qualification, in castellano: Eliminatorias, is that of Conmebol, the South American football association. Ten countries play 4.5 places in the final round. Nowhere in the world is it closer and more emotional. There are no favorites, anyone can beat anyone. In addition, the Eliminatorias are the actual South American championship, because everyone competes against everyone else in the home and away leg. The games at heights in La Paz and Quito are hell, and the tropical heat of Barranquilla is not bad either. Paraguay has just switched to daylight saving time and therefore tomorrow (local time) in the Estadio Defensores del Chaco in the capital Asunción the first of 90 games will be kicked off: Paraguay against Peru. Peru have one run and Paraguay defeated in the last six games. In addition, the hosts have lost four of the last five Eliminatorias at home (including a 1: 4 against Peru) – and that is why they did not start in Russia.
In Montevideo there is a classic between the home team Uruguay and Chile. In 28 fights the Charrúas have never suffered a defeat at home to the Trasandinos. In addition, they did not lose a single home game last year and they had never kicked that many (13). The last international game that Chile played was dated October 2019; Back then, the Roja won 3-2 against Guinea – previously they had been without a win in seven matches (including a 0-1 defeat against the Urus at the Copa America in Brazil).
Argentina – Ecuador and on Friday (local time) Colombia – Venezuela and Brazil – Bolivia will also play. Good luck for!
