The FIFA World Cup 2022 is heading towards the finale. Varying from all the other Football World Cups that have been held to date, this World Cup has come up with a series of legacies. This World Cup has seen some of the never happened incidents in the history of the Football World Cups.Â
The first thing that has broken the hearts of most football lovers is that the FIFA World Cup 2022 is the last world cup for Ronaldo and Messi, two incredible football stars of the era. You can’t help but observe that most senior players are seasoned athletes well into their 30s and likely competing in their final World Cup.Â
They are unlikely to appear at the 2026 World Cup in the US, Mexico, and Canada. Karim Benzema of France, the current Ballon d’Or winner and the world’s most outstanding player, was left out of France’s team due to injury, meaning his World Cup is already finished. Given his lengthy injury history, even Neymar might be playing in his final World Cup.
And by serving as the focal point of what may be the strongest Brazil team in twenty years, this was unquestionably his best opportunity of ultimately winning the thing. But unfortunately, Brazil was no more a part of the FIFA World Cup 2022 after its defeat to Croatia. There is cause for optimism despite the United States’ elimination from the World Cup.
FIFA World Cup 2022 As A Negative Benchmark For Measuring Legacy
This World Cup has been overtaken by the feeling that it is the final dance for a whole generation of superstars. You will witness all the aging legends say their final farewells, including Messi, Neymar, Modric, Suárez, Ronaldo, Lewandowski, Gareth Bale, and the entire Belgium team.
The competition is conscious that it serves as a farewell tour for the iconic figures who have dominated and revolutionized the sport over the past ten years. Even though they are largely no longer its top players, it has bowed respectfully to soccer’s well-known faces. Against Morocco, Modric escaped numerous obvious yellow cards.
Following his underwhelming performance for Brazil in its 2-0 opening victory over Serbia, Neymar made the extremely Neymar gesture of taking off his cleat and sock before coming down the player tunnel. Because of his deal with Qatari-owned Paris Saint-Germain, Neymar was, after all, everywhere at this World Cup—in TV commercials and on billboards.
It all comes down to Neymar’s apparent drive to claim the World Cup as the pinnacle of his professional career. In the absence of a World Cup title, who deserves to be in the pantheon of greats? Messi and Ronaldo have won the Euro and Copa América, respectively, but neither has won a World Cup. Neymar has won only the Olympics.
Then, just before Belgium’s match against Morocco, De Bruyne gave an interview to The Guardian in which he claimed that Belgium had “no chance, we’re too old,” of winning the World Cup. According to De Bruyne, 2018 was our best chance. “Our team is strong, but it is becoming older. Some significant players left.”
He most likely had a point. In its subsequent match, Morocco defeated Belgium 2-0, and De Bruyne only managed to complete 14 passes in the first half. The game’s top developer for Belgium only produced one chance. The Belgians were eliminated after a scoreless draw with Croatia. At the 2018 World Cup, they finished third.
Romelu Lukaku, another last dancer, failed to convert any of his few second-half opportunities, resulting in a whopping 1.7 anticipated goals, according to FBRef.com. Lewandowski was booed on every touch for Poland by the mainly Mexican crowd. It seemed puzzling, given that Lewandowski had never previously scored in a World Cup.
Lewandowski finally scored against Saudi Arabia, capitalizing on a defensive blunder, and assisted on another goal. He sobbed as he fell to the ground. Despite Poland losing 2-0 against Argentina in the group stage finale, his contributions in that game ultimately allowed Poland to advance to the knockout stage of the FIFA World Cup 2022.
However, some teams seem to be held hostage by their legends in some way. Even though Luis Suárez and Edinson Cavani are 35 years old, Uruguay isn’t quite as dynamic as it could be. There is a strong case to be made that Portugal’s offensive would work better without Ronaldo, even if the 37-year-old Portuguese holds the record with 118 international goals.
Other Important Things To Know About FIFA World Cup 2022
The series of legacies connected to the FIFA World Cup 2022 is confined to the last world cup of the above-mentioned football stars and covers major contributions. Talking about the host country, Qatar, is the soonest of any host to get out of the knockout so early. At the same time, Poland qualified for the knockout stages of the world cup after 1986.
Also, in the history of the FIFA World Cups, it uses artificial intelligence to ensure that the technology gets the offside and other calls right. When the ball is received by an attacker who was in an offside position when a teammate played the ball, the video match officials stationed in the video operation room will be notified.
It will be the first World Cup played in November and December in a Middle-East country. It is because Qatar, the host country, suffers from 50°C heat. Such conditions make international event hosting practically impossible. The FIFA World Cup 2022 is missing European Champion Italy, and Italy missed the grand stage consecutively for the second time.
Qatar is investing over $200 billion in infrastructure projects related to the World Cup. These projects include the construction of hotels, highways, and stadiums. As a direct consequence of this fact, the upcoming competition will be one of the most expensive FIFA World Cups that has ever taken place.
For the first time in history, a country will host the FIFA World Cup in stadiums equipped with full air conditioning. All eight Qatar stadiums will be fully air-conditioned, providing spectators with a comfortable viewing experience and players with suitable conditions to compete on the field. It is done to create a comfortable environment during the matches.
Final Words
FIFA World Cup 2022, the world’s largest and most prestigious tournament, is about to finish, and supporters are already excited for the finals. The 2022 World Cup will be the last to have a 32-team format since the event’s next edition will feature 48 teams. Hope India will make it to the next World Cup. Keep waiting to check which teams will compete for the Golden Cup in 2022.
