Qatar organizers report massive interest in World Cup ticket sales
The FIFA World Cup may still be months away and the qualifying tournaments are still going on in many parts of the world, but the magic of the world’s biggest sporting event of all times has begun! It shows in the dazzle of rising ticket sales, reports Ticket News, as the quadrennial event draws near. In addition, leading sportsbooks such as Soccer Betway, are expected to draw large interest from sports betting fans around the world, due to the high profile of the tournament.
The World Cup is set to take place in Qatar from November 21 to December 18, 2022, after organizers decided to move the event from the traditional summer months of April or May. The oil-rich country has a long dry season, between April and September, characterized by intense heat and spells of dryness and humidity.
Experts expect ticket sales to scale up as more countries qualify for the 32 slots available in the prestigious tournament. So far, only 15 countries have qualified for the elite tournament, including host country Qatar, defending champion France, and runner-up Croatia.
Biggest Individual Team Event in the World
According to the Global Broadcast and Audience Summary, the 2018 World Cup Finals in Russia drew a total of 3.57 billion views, slightly less than the World Summer Olympics. As an individual event, however, no sporting event can match the viewership of the World Cup Finals, regardless of which two countries make it to the finals.
The last staging of the World Cup saw France upstaging Croatia, 4-2, to win the prestigious Cup before a capacity crowd at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow.
In Qatar, the games will be played in eight world-class football stadiums, with each stadium having a seating capacity from 40,000 to 80,000 fans at any given moment. Qatar is the smallest and the first Arab country to ever host the tournament. However, the oil-rich monarchy has more than enough wealth to summon and place every possible logistical support at its disposal.
Parade of Football Stars
The biggest football stars in the world will take a break from their respective football clubs to represent their individual countries in the competitions. Some of the top soccer stars who saw action in Russia for the 2018 World Cup are as follows:
1. Luka Modric (Croatia)
2. Kylian Mbappe (France)
3. N’Golo Kante (France)
4. Kevin De Bruyne (Belgium)
5. Eden Hazard (Belgium)
6. Philippe Coutinho (Brazil)
7. Ivan Perisic (Croatia)
8. Romelu Lukaku (Belgium)
9. Diego Godin (Uruguay)
10. Kieran Trippier (England)
11. Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal)
12. Kylian Mbappe (France)
13. Giorgio Chiellini (Italy)
14. Sergio Ramos (Spain)
15. Lionel Messi (Argentina)
16. Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal)
17. Simon Kjaer (Denmark)
18. Nathan Ake (Netherlands)
19. Marc-André ter Stegen (Germany)
20. Landon Donovan (USA)
France Kylian Mbappe, who was 19 when he helped push his country to World Cup victory in 2018, will be wiser and stronger when he leads his team against the world’s best in Qatar to defend the Cup.
Veteran playmakers Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal), Neymar (Brazil), Lionel Messi (Argentina), and Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal) are again expected to draw in the crowds, but the young guns are sure to create the drama and excitement to assert their presence in the World Cup.
African Threat
Interestingly, eight countries from Europe have already qualified for the tournament, with five more from the United Europe Football Associations (UEFA) expected to be added to the list. In Africa, 10 countries are still in contention for five slots allotted for the Confederation of African Football (CAF).
Aside from Europe and Latin American, countries from Africa are being closely monitored by Betway analysts and rival teams from around the world due to the growing number of African soccer players in the highly competitive European leagues.
Premier League veterans, like Mohamed Salah (Egypt) and Sadio Mane (Senegal), are expected to don their respective national colors in the World Cup.
