The final week of the World Cup starts on Sunday, with 32 teams gathering in Qatar to compete for the prestigious Hercules Cup. This year's tournament has been called the most special World Cup in history, with surprises in terms of time, place and participating teams, creating a sense of freshness for the fans.
Wonderland 1
Qatar is fine enough. The team doesn't have to work both ways.
This will be the second time that the World Cup final week has been held in Asia, with Japan and South Korea co-hosting the event in 2002, making this the first time that a single Asian country has hosted the tournament. The hosts, Qatar, have an area of only 11,581 square kilometers, which is one-third the size of Beijing, which is good news for the team's preparations as they will be spared from the hassle of traveling.
Spectacle 2
Chill out and disrupt the major leagues.
Traditionally, the final week of the World Cup is held between June and July, but this year's tournament is being held in the winter months, starting in late November, due to Qatar's very hot summer months, with average temperatures above 37 degrees Celsius, and as high as 41 degrees Celsius in July, which is not suitable for the tournament at all. For the sake of the players' health, they have to break with the tradition and play in the winter, and the major European leagues and cups have been interrupted, which is definitely a big test for the major soccer clubs to compete for the title this season.
Spectacle 3
Hong Kong Fans Get Their Eyes on the Ball During Meal Time
Qatar is only five hours behind Hong Kong in terms of time difference. Most of the matches are scheduled to be held before 12:00 p.m. Hong Kong time, with many of the group matches being played at 6:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. The first 9:00 p.m. match of the tournament will be England vs. Iran on the 21st, so Hong Kong fans will be able to watch the match while they have dinner, which is believed to be helpful in boosting the popularity of watching the tournament.
Spectacle 4
Weakest host country, almost no participation in the opening match.
Qatar, the host country, is the only one of the 32 teams to be playing in the final week for the first time, making them the weakest hosts in the competition. Their first match against
Ecuador
In the past, the opening match of the tournament was scheduled for a later date because of a weak show, but it was eventually reintroduced as the opening match to save the face of the host country.
Wonderland 5
The 3 males are in the same group for the second time in a row.
Brazil, Switzerland and Serbia have been drawn in the same group this year after last year's draw, so it's a good idea to predict the sides.
beyond the pale
Very informative. Brazil won two and drew one in the last group stage, including beating Serbia with Switzerland, and finished first in the group stage.
beyond the pale
The Switzerland in second place
beyond the pale
The most important thing is to beat Serbia 2-1, will there be a repeat of history this time? Let's wait and see.
Wonderland 6
The Last Tango, the two champions of the game, will be crowned.
The two top players, Cron and Mez, are 37 and 35 years old respectively, and this will probably be their last time to play in the final week of the World Cup. Mez led Argentina to the final of the World Cup in 2014, but they were defeated by Germany, with Higuain missing a single shot. As for Portugal, they have already shaken off the stigma of being a one-man team with Cron and are in a strong position to win the tournament. The pair are aiming to fulfill their dream of being crowned the World Cup champions of the ages.
Wonderland 7
Arabian Cup instead. Warming up the venue.
In the year before the last five World Cups, the hosts held the Intercontinental Cup of Nations as a preview, but the tournament was discontinued after 2017, and Qatar held the Arabian Cup at the end of November last year as a warm-up for the venue, with West Asian and North African countries taking part, and in the end Algeria, who didn't get to play in the final week, won the tournament by beating Tunisia, while Qatar finished third.
