Qatar World Cup: All you need to know

In just under a month, the largest sporting event in the World is set to kick off with the Qatar Word Cup, taking place for the first time in the Arab World and during winter.

On 20 November, the first match of a one-month tournament will take place, heralding the start of a month of high-intensity action that will be watched by up to 4 billion people across the world. The football tournament will see 22 of the world’s best teams battle it out through the group stages to the semi-finals and then the final to see who will become the best team in the World.

The Qatar World Cup is not without its controversies, one of which is the time of year and the time difference. Instead of being held in the summer due to high temperatures, it will occur in winter when temperatures are cooler. Furthermore, the game times have caused chaos for some football fans who complain they take place when they are at work or even asleep. But despite that, it is still the biggest and best football tournament of the last four years. So what do you need to know before it starts?

All you need to know

The first game is on 20 November, and the grand finale will take place on 18th December. The group phase will finish by 2 December, with knockout rounds occurring between 3 and 6 December. The semi-finals will take place from the 14 December, followed by the third place play-offs on the 17th, and then the final of the day after.

A total of 32 teams will participate and are divided into eight different groups, each with four teams. The teams will play each other within each group, with the winners progressing to the next stage. Winners of the last three World Cups, Spain, France, and Germany, are all playing in the upcoming tournament. They will be joined by popular teams such as England, the USA, Argentina, Croatia, and Portugal. Italy did not qualify this time around. Some more unusual names on the list include Korea, Tunisia, Iran, Serbia, and Morocco.

As mentioned, this will be the first winter world cup. During the summer, temperatures can reach 50 degrees Celsius, making it impossible for players to play. During the winter, temperatures range between 5-29 degrees Celsius, which is much more manageable.

This is set to be the most expensive World Cup ever, costing more than GBP 138 billion in terms of infrastructure investment. That includes building stadiums, hotels, athletes’ villages, roads, and more. Despite the price tag, Qatar has the least number of stadiums of any world cup- just eight built from scratch and one being renovated. Lusail Stadium is the largest and has a capacity of 80,000 fans.

The Qatar World Cup is estimated to have the most number of visitors due to its location in a central travel hub between Asia, Europe, and Africa. More than one million international visitors are expected to arrive on some 1300 flights coming every single day during the tournament.

This year’s tournament will be the first ever in the Middle East and the second world cup ever in Asia.

More about Qatar

Qatar is the smallest country to host the tournament, bumping Uraguay off its previous perch. The whole country is the same size as New York City, and it has a population of 2.8 million. Because of its small size, all the stadiums are connected by the Doha Metro, making it much easier for people to get around.

As a Muslim country where alcohol is illegal, there were concerns that fans would not be able to buy beer during the tournament. But the Qatari government has set up special fan zones where foreign visitors can purchase and consume alcohol during the event.

Due to Qatar’s hot and dry climate, a lot of water is needed to keep the football pitches in tip-top shape. Each pitch in the eight stadiums requires 100 bathtubs or 10,000 liters of water daily to stay healthy. Organizers will also need some 8000 cans of line marking spray to mark the lines on the pitch after each game.

Last but not least, ticket prices are the most expensive on record this year, topping out at over GBP 1700 for the final and starting at just under GBP60 for group matches.

Are you ready?

During the last World Cup in 2018, more than EUR 136 billion was spent on bets worldwide throughout the tournament- the highest level ever recorded. That was a staggering EUR 38 billion in profit for bookmakers, both online and offline, across the World. But a lot has changed since then. More people are online than ever before, and more are betting and interested in betting on the upcoming tournament. That means that as a bookie, you need to be ready.

In 2022, more than ever, you must have an online presence if you want to be a bookie. This means you need to get yourself a pay-per-head sportsbook. When you partner with Bookie Helper, you get a fully-fledged online sportsbook for your players that you remain in total control of. Our system allows you to log in and manage all betting activity while providing complete customization for every aspect of the business. In addition, you can manage your sub-agents and each player, setting individual parameters for each one.

As well as providing sports betting for the Qatar World Cup, you can offer your players casino, including slots and table games, at no extra charge. This means you get to enjoy another stream of revenue without having to pay out of pocket for it yourself. We also offer live casino games, but you need to pay a small fee.

Our entire online sportsbook is mobile-friendly and provides multi-lingual customer service, casino games, and much more; it is available at just $7 per active player per week. This is what you get when you partner with us for the Qatar World Cup 2022 and beyond.

Asides from this, we also offer a portfolio of sports betting and online casino products to all bookies. If you want a particular service and don’t see it listed, please contact us, and we will be happy to know if we can figure it out. Furthermore, if you have a high number of players, we are also ready to discuss lower fees with you- all you have to do is ask.

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