A is for Argentina
For a nation of their profile, Argentina's recent World Cup record has been surprisingly poor. They may be two-time winners but since their last triumph in 1986 they’ve only made it past the quarter-finals stages twice.
Still, it wouldn’t be a World Cup without Argentina and they’ve been ever-present since 1974, even if they often underperform given the players at their disposal.
Getting the most out of Lionel Messi has proved to be difficult for a succession of managers, but as the PSG man gets on in years that seems to be less of a problem, with players deferring to him less and expectations lifting slightly.
Messi claims that this is his final World Cup and given Argentina’s form coming into the competition – they’re unbeaten in 35 games, this may be the perfect way for him to bow out.
B is for Brazil
The other great South American power, Brazil head to Qatar as the favourites to lift the World Cup.
On paper, the Selecao have perhaps the strongest squad in the tournament with genuine quality all over the pitch. Alisson and Ederson are battling it out for the goalkeeper’s jersey, Marquinhos and Eder Militao anchor their defence, while there’s a host of talent in midfield.
However, it's up front where Brazil’s embarrassment of riches is the most obvious, so much so that they can afford to leave the likes of Roberto Firmino at home. Neymar remains the star of the show but with supporting acts like Raphinha, Gabriel Jesus and Richarlison, they’re going to be a lot of fun to watch.
C is for Cost
Holding a World Cup in a desert country that’s one sixth the size of Ireland is bound to cost a pretty penny, but how much exactly?
Hassan Al Thawadi, head of the Qatari body tasked with organising the tournament, says that building infrastructure alone has cost an eye-watering $200bn, while US sports finance consultancy Front Office Sports estimates the entire World Cup will cost $220bn.
For reference, the next most expensive tournament was the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, costing $15bn.
D is for Drink
The determined tippler might have to get creative in Qatar, given the sudden and dramatic late decision to ban the sale of beer at stadiums throughout the tournament, going back on previous guarantees.
Headline FIFA sponsor Budweiser will surely be looking for a refund on their $75m deal with FIFA while everyone else may have to make do with a jar full of fruit peel, water and yeast left beside a radiator.
E is for Environment
Both FIFA and Qatar's organising committee have promised that this will be the first carbon neutral World Cup, pledging to offset all carbon emissions related to the tournament.
However, there has been plenty of scepticism about that pledge and advocacy group Carbon Market Watch has cast major doubt on the ability or desire of organisers to have a truly carbon neutral event.
"This claim lacks credibility due to the apparent large-scale underestimation of the event's emissions and the low quality of the carbon credits currently purchased to offset the climate impact," a report from CMW states.
F is for Fans
What’s a World Cup without fans? We might be about to find out. The prohibitive costs involved in travelling to and staying in Qatar along with the restrictive regime means that this year’s tournament is a hard sell.
That is, for people who would be paying their own way. Thankfully the organisers have considered that and for some lucky supporters, they will be getting an all-expenses paid tribute to the tournament, as long as they contribute through 'content creation and message amplification'.
The 'Fan Leader Network' will provide flights, tickets and accommodation for supporters who agree to terms and conditions, which includes "liking and resharing third-party posts" and flagging social media content that is critical of the tournament.
G is for Grass
How do you maintain a football pitch in a desert? With a high degree of difficulty.
A team of over 700 groundskeepers have been working on ensuring that the stadiums and training pitches are ready to go for the World Cup. A total of 74 pitches are being tended to, with each pitch needing 10,000 litres of desalinated water daily in winter.
A 425,000 square metre reserve of grass, roughly 40 pitches worth, is being maintained at a farm north of Doha.
H is for Heat
It may be the middle of November when the World Cup gets under way but there’s no escaping the fact that the competition is being played in what is basically a desert, and deserts are very, very hot.
With temperatures of up to 35C come kick-off and humidity at 70%, it’s going to be uncomfortable for players and supporters alike, no matter what kind of air conditioning the hosts implement in stadiums.
FIFA has confirmed that there will be drink breaks in each half but conditions are certain to affect games and it may be to the benefit of South American and African teams.
I is for Injuries
A World Cup in 35C heat, in the middle of a domestic season with just a week of lead-in time? What could possibly go wrong?
Quite a lot. You could make a fairly competitive squad out of the players who have been ruled out the tournament in the last month, with the likes of Sadio Mane, N’Golo Kante, Presnel Kimpembe, Timo Werner and Paul Pogba all stuck at home and things aren’t going to get better in Qatar.
With gruelling conditions and players already exhausted going into the tournament, it’s going to be long slog for the squads that stick around after the group stage.
J is for Jersey
It’s a close-run affair this time out but heavy outsiders Tunisia win the jersey World Cup before a ball has even been kicked with their third strip. It’s a work of art and the only disappointment is that they’re only likely to wear it once – in their opening game against Denmark.
Nigeria, are also bringing the goods with their home kit, and yes, before you ask, it is a coincidence that they're both green. No bias here at all.
K is for Kick-off
Qatar is three hours ahead of Ireland and as a result, kick-off times are nicely set up for us.
Four matches will be played each day during the group stage of the 2022 Qatar World Cup, with kick-offs for the first two rounds of matches planned for 10am, 1pm and 4pm and 7pm Irish time, and every single game will be like on RTÉ.
L is LBGTQ+
Being gay in Qatar is a crime that can carry a term of imprisonment of seven years and it is a country known to surveil and arrest LGBTQ+ people based on their online activity.
The decision to award the hosting of a World Cup to such a repressive country remains controversial and recent statements from World Cup ambassador Khalid Salman will have done little to convince anyone that gay people will be welcome.
M is for Migrant Workers
We’ll leave this one to Amnesty International.
"Despite the government’s ongoing efforts to reform Qatar’s labour system, abuses remain rife across the country.
"While conditions have improved for some workers, thousands are still facing issues such as delayed or unpaid wages, denial of rest days, unsafe working conditions, barriers to changing jobs, and limited access to justice, while the deaths of thousands of workers remain uninvestigated.
"Although a fund has started to pay out significant amounts to workers who have had wages stolen, hundreds of thousands of migrant workers have still not been compensated for labour abuses faced in the past decade. Forced labour and other forms of abuse continue unabated, particularly in the private security sector and for domestic workers, most of whom are women."
N is for Neymar
With Messi and Ronaldo both the wrong side of 35 and almost certainly gearing up for their final World Cup, there's the sense that it's finally time for Neymar to deliver on his endless promise and make a statement on the biggest stage.
He hasn't been able to manage it with his club Paris St Germain as he's increasingly forced to play second fiddle to Kylian Mbappe, and the French giants continue to disappoint on the European stage.
Neymar remains the star turn with Brazil but now is the time for him to produce what could be a career defining tournament performance. He's been playing some scintillating football and, as the main focal point in the Brazilian attack, will get opportunities that others can only dream of.
It's time to deliver.
O is for Official Ball
This year’s official World Cup ball is Al Rihla or ‘The Journey’. A breathless press releases from Adidas speaks of ‘a CRT-core at the heart of the ball, and a ‘a textured Speedshell PU skin’. Really though, all you need to know is that, no, it’s not as good as the Adidas Tango and yes, it’s better than the Jabulani.
P is for Penalties
Or how England will eventually exit the competition.
Q is for Qatar
For all the focus of the human rights abuses, and the rights and wrongs of Qatar hosting the tournament, not much has been said about their soccer team.
Qualifying automatically as hosts and managed by former Barcelona youth player Felix Sanchez, Qatar feel like a bit of an unknown quantity.
Sanchez has been working with the Qatar FA since 2006 and with a large number of nationalised ‘project players’ from Africa and the Middle East, he has been able to bring his player through the ranks and mould them into an effective unit – as Irish supporter can attest to after their 1-1 draw last year.
Their opening game against Ecuador is a must-win, but if they can get a victory there then the group could open up for them, particularly with a Senegal side missing Sadio Mane taking on the Netherlands in their opener.
R is for Ronaldo
The Ronaldo roadshow moves from Manchester to Qatar and the drama looks likely to continue.
Having thoroughly ruined his legacy at Old Trafford with his antics over the last six months, Ronaldo is nevertheless eyeing the one major trophy that has eluded him in an illustrious career – the World Cup.
He remains the Portuguese skipper but competition for places in attack is fierce. Given a lack of club minutes and form, his position in the starting line-up is under pressure like never before and manager Fernando Santos has been at pains to insist that he’s not guaranteed a spot.
Piers Morgan will no doubt be waiting by his phone.
S is for Song
Every tournament has to have one and the good news here is that for once, neither Pit Bull or David Guetta are involved.
The official 2022 World Cup song is Hayya Hayya (Better Together) by Trinidad Cardona, Davido and Aisha and it’s...fine? Slightly catchy, fairly inoffensive, and bound to be entirely forgotten as soon as the whistle go on the final.
It's no Wakka Wakka (This Time for Africa).
T is for Alfredo Talavera
Mexican goalkeeper Alfredo Talavera is the oldest player at the 2022 World Cup.
The Juarez shot-stopper will be 40 years and 45 days old when the tournament gets underway and he has four months on the next oldest player Canada’s Atiba Hutchinson, with Portugal’s seemingly ageless pit bull Pepe also in the mix.
U is for Underdogs
Iran, Saudi Arabia, Costa Rica and Tunisia are all among the sides that people would have been hoping to avoid in the office sweepstakes but there’s always a side that comes through with a major upset or two and if you’re asking, I have a sneaking suspicion that Iran will cause a shock.
Separated by only 112 miles of the Persian Gulf, this is a close as a home tournament that Iran are ever likely to have and there’s narrative galore in their group with England, USA and Wales.
Manager Carlos Queiroz is as defensive as they come and will be more than happy to sit back and spoil against the so called bigger teams, waiting for the one opportunity that might come their way.
Even if they don’t make it out of the group, they’re likely to have a big say is who does.
V is for Venues
With just eight stadiums being used for the 2022 World Cup, it’s the lowest number of stadiums deployed since the 1978 World Cup in Argentina.
Seven of the eight stadium have been specifically built for the tournament, with only the Khalifa International Stadium already an established ground, having been built in 1976 and renovated for this tournament.
Six of the stadium have a capacity of 40,000, with the Al Bayt Stadium holding 60,000 and the Lusail Stadium seating 80,000.
W is Women
For the first at the men’s World Cup there will be female referees. Stephanie Frappart from France, Japan's Yoshimi Yamashita and Salima Mukansanga of Rwanda will all take charge of matches.
X is for eXperience
Qatar, surprisingly, have the highest average number of caps in the squad at 53, comfortably higher than second placed Belgium at 40.
Cristiano Ronaldo is the most capped player at the tournament with 191 appearances for his country. Mexico’s Andres Guardado is the next player behind him on 171.
Y is for Youth
There’ll be plenty of fresh faces and wispy facial hair in Qatar, with Germany’s Youssoufa Moukoko the youngest player at the tournament.
The Borussia Dortmund boy will turn 18 on the day that the World Cup starts, but even if he features for Germany in their opening game, he’ll still be behind Norman Whiteside as the youngest player to ever feature at the tournament.
Ghana have the youngest squad in Qatar, with an average age of 23.5 years old.
Z is for Zzzzz
The World Cup opening ceremony, live from the Al Bayt Stadium on RTÉ Two from 2.30pm on Sunday.
The good or bad news, depending on your point of view, is that Dua Lipa will not be performing. There will thankfully, be some football however, with Qatar and Ecuador kicking off at 4pm, maybe wait until then before tuning in.
