All eyes on Qatar as world await kick-off of global spectacle

With only hours remaining for the kick-off of the 22nd FIFA World Cup in Qatar, the world is excited as the beautiful game will one of the prime topics for a major section of the global population. 32 teams from different continents have been divided into eight groups. The match between the hosts and Ecuador at the Al Bait Stadium in Doha on Sunday at 9.30 pm IST will mark the beginning of the festival of the global sport.

The teams participating in World Cup have reached the base camps in Qatar. Football fans from around the global are flocking to Middle East to experience the thrills of the competition.

The holders of the last four World Cups were European countries. A Latin American country last won the World Cup in 2022. Current champions France and former champions Germany are among the favourites to win the coveted trophy this time as well. Spain, Belgium and Croatia, and England also have a strong squad. Brazil and Argentina named teams that can compete for the big prize, and it is going to be a great fight to bring back the Latin American dominance.

Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Neymar have been the star attractions of the World Cups since 2010. Although none of these players have been able to win the World Cup yet, they are still the fan favorites. Kylian Mbappé, who impressed in the last World Cup, and a bunch of youngsters might lit up this tournament. The world may witness the rise of a new star when the World Cup comes to a close on December 18.

Lionel Messi, regarded by many as the greatest player to play the sport, has announced that this will be his last World Cup. In the case of Cristiano, who has rivalled Messi for more than 15 years, the case is no different. With a good team effort, the Portugese team can put up a good show like they did in Euro Cup 2016.

Messi put an end to his trophy drought with Argentina by winning the 2021 Copa America title. Since then, Argentina's fans around the world have another image in their mind, that of Messi lifting the World Cup at Lusail Stadium in Qatar. If the weight of the entire country was on Messi's shoulders in many World Cups, the story will change this time. As a team, Argentina are showing great progress under young coach Lionel Scaloni. Argentina is unbeaten in the last 36 matches, which includes two title wins, Copa America and Finalissima.

Brazil, who have won the World Cup five times, have not won a World Cup in the Neymar era. The 30-year old can still weave his magic and there is group of exciting talents to assist him in the forward line, including Antony and Vinicius Jr.

Luka Modric, who led Croatia to the finals of the 2018 World Cup and won the golden ball for the best player, Kevin De Bruyne, the midfielder who is at the helm of the English club Manchester City, Harry Kane-England's scoring machine, Phil Foden, England's exciting youngster, Pedri-who has already played 73 matches for FC Barcelona at the age of 19, Canadian left back Alphonso Davies, Chelsea's Senegalese Eduardo Mendy, Holland's center back Virgil Van Dijk, and Germany's Joshua Kimmisch are among the players to watch out.

The weather in Qatar is not so ideal for those coming from European countries. Considering the complaints of European countries that the heat in Qatar would be a challenge, the competitions were moved from the usual June-July months to November-December. The European Football Association has publicly expressed its displeasure with Qatar being awarded the World Cup venue. Allegations were also raised that the human rights of the workers were violated during the construction of the venues. But Qatar is running the World Cup by splashing the cash, despite drawing criticism from its rivals. This is the most expensive World Cup till date.

Another feature of this World Cup is the presence of Malayalis. Malayalis played a major role in the World Cup preparations which includes infrastructure development and stadium construction. Tens of thousands of people are flying to Qatar considering this as the best opportunity for Keralites to watch the World Cup in person. A good number of expatriate Malayalis from other Gulf countries will also come to Qatar. The pulse of the world will be shrink to a football for the next few days. Let's be a part of this beautiful festival of the beautiful game.