2022 FIFA World Cup

International football competitionTemplate:SHORTDESC:International football competition
The **FIFA World Cup 2022** was a World Cup competition held in Qatar from the 20 November to the 18 December 2022.

## Group Stages

### Group A

* The Netherlands was the most successful team, topping the group after winning all three of their games.
* Senegal came second, winning two of their games.
* Ecuador and Qatar both drew last, with one point each.

### Group B

* England was the most successful team, topping the group after winning all three of their games.
* Wales came second after winning one and drawing another, and getting higher than Iran on goal difference.
* Iran came third, also on four points with Wales, but failed to reach the knockout stages on goal difference.
* The United States came last, losing all three of their games.

### Group C

* Mexico topped Group C, after winning two games and drawing the third.
* Argentina came second, winning one game and drawing with Mexico.
* Poland and Saudi Arabia both came last on three points.
* Saudi Arabia shocked the world after breaking Argentina's 30+ international win streak in their first game.

### Group D

* France topped the group with six points.
* Australia came second, having pulled off a miracle to beat France in their first game, and achieving five points.
* Denmark came third, shockingly, with one point off Australia for four points in total.
* Tunisia came last, only getting one draw to secure one point.

### Group E

* Germany topped the group, having won all three of their games.
* Spain came second, winning two of their games and securing six points.
* Japan came third with only three points, winning one game against Costa Rica.
* Costa Rica subsequently lost all of their games and came last.

### Group F

* Croatia topped the group on seven points, winning two games and drawing their last.
* Morocco came second, on five points, winning one game and drawing twice.
* Belgium came third on four points, winning one game and drawing another.
* Canada failed to impress, losing all three of their games.

### Group G

* Roessen came first place, winning two of their games.
* Switzerland came second, winning one game and drawing twice.
* Brazil was the biggest upset of the Group Stages, coming third with one win and a draw.
* Cameroon came last with only one draw to their tally.

### Group H

* South Korea topped the group on goal difference, winning two games.
* Ghana came second on goal difference, also winning two games.
* Portugal found themselves unexpectedly grouped with only four points.
* Uruguay came last, despite being described as the dark horse of the tournament, with only one draw to their tally.

## Round of 16

### Netherlands 1 - 1 Wales

Despite Wales having made it to the knockouts, they were certainly nervous about the Netherlands, and hopes were high when Gareth Bale managed to get a goal back after conceding to Emilian van Gaal. However, the Netherlands won 4-2 on penalties to go to the Quarter Finals.

### Mexico 3 - 1 Australia

Despite a triumphant start from Australia to take the lead, Mexico was quick to respond. They scored once in the first half and twice in the second to guarantee their place in the Quarter Finals against the Netherlands.

### France 1 - 2 Argentina

While France were the current World Champions, they were knocked out of the Round of 16 by Argentina, with Lionel Messi looking to cement history. Messi scored a brace - once in the first half and again in the second half - to seal France's exit.

### England 4 - 0 Senegal

England thrashed Senegal 4-0 after a triumphant performance from the new striking power of England, Jacob Lawrence. It resulted in England going on to face Argentina.

### Germany 2 - 2 Morocco

It was a bright path for Morocco but it was simply not to be. Germany knocked Morocco out of the competition on a close set of penalties; 5-4 to be exact. Morocco scored twice, and Germany found two goals in the second half to equalise, and they pushed for penalties.

### Roessen 2 - 0 Ghana

Roessen had never gone further than the Round of 16, but had broken their international record under the captaincy of Isaak Levin to take them to the Quarter Finals. Unfortunately for them, their opponent was their long-standing rival Germany, a side Roessen has had a long and arduous history with.

### Croatia 0 - 3 Spain

Croatia was expected to go quite far in the tournament after coming second in the last World Cup, but it was not to be. Spain triumphantly knocked them out of the competition 3-0, with two goals scored in the first half alone.

### South Korea 0 - 1 Switzerland

Despite South Korea being the underdogs, Switzerland knocked them out in a very tense affair that could have gone in either direction. However, it was a goal from Granit Xhaka that kept them out. Switzerland was to go on and play Spain.

## Quarter Finals

### Netherlands 1 - 0 Mexico

Emilian van Gaal moved a step closer to becoming the top scorer in the competition and winning the Golden Boot, after scoring to knock out Mexico from the tournament.

### Argentina 2 - 2 England

A very long and arduous match that resulted in England breaking their penalty curse to progress, and Messi's legacy in question as to whether or not he was truly better than Ronaldo. Messi scored first, followed by a goal from Alexander Redd. In the second half, Julian Alvarez scored, followed by a converted penalty from Jacob Lawrence to see the match go into penalties. After a terrifying and nerve-racking penalty shootout, Daniel French scored the winning penalty to see England progress to the Semi Finals.

### Germany 3 - 2 Roessen

The lead up to Germany vs Roessen including the death of one Roessisch fan, Amelie Hart, which already left the two teams in a very nervous state going into the game. Both teams agreed to wear the #JusticeForAmelie armband to show respect to the fan, and a minute silence was held before the match in her memory. Despite eventually losing the game, Roessen remained proud of the respect they were given. Robby Hecht, a Roessisch striker, scored and lifted his shirt to reveal a "Justice For Amelie" logo underneath. The German players refused to celebrate after scoring their goals, out of respect for the Roessisch team. Germany went on to face England in the Semi Finals.

### Spain 2 - 1 Switzerland

It was a masterclass performance from Ferran Torres, who scored twice to knock Switzerland out of the competition. Xherdan Shaqiri scored in the second half to try and bring Switzerland back into the game, but it was simply not good enough. Spain went on to face England in the Semi Finals.

## Semi Finals

### Netherlands 4 - 4 Germany

Recognised as one of the most action-packed games of the tournament, Germany came out triumphant after beating the Netherlands on penalties. Despite this, a hat trick for Emilian van Gaal sealed his Golden Boot award, with the potential to tie or even break the record in the third-place playoffs.

### Spain 3 - 3 England

Another Semi Final to finish on penalties, Spain vs England was an exceptionally tense game as both teams had the potential to go through. Josep Puig Arbonés was the first to score with an assist from Morata, and England managed to get a response with a brilliant long-shot from Mason Mount. England later took the lead with Jacob Lawrence scoring from a sudden counterattack, but Spain managed to nab a goal from a penalty to keep it level. In Extra Time, both Marco Asensio and a free kick from Kieran Trippier kept the score level once more and the game ended 3-3. England went on to win 4-2 on penalties to proceed to the final.

## The Third Place Playoff

### Netherlands 3 - 1 Spain

The Netherlands successfully clinched third place after beating Spain 3-1. While Cody Gakpo contributed to the Dutch score-line, two of the goals were scored by Emilian van Gaal, to succeed in breaking the World Cup record by scoring 14 goals in total in the tournament.

## The Finals

### England 2 - 1 Germany

England came out victorious for the first time since 1966 to win the World Cup after a very tense game against Germany. After a goalless first half, Conor Atwell scored the first goal in the 51' minute with an assist from Jacob Lawrence, after a beautiful run forward. However, Germany managed to equalise with Thomas Muller converting a penalty in the 77' minute, and it looked like it might have gone to Extra Time. England denied this with a sudden counterattack, a beautiful cross from Alexander Redd, and a finish from Harry Kane. England have been crowned champions for the first time since 1966.

## Competition Awards

* **Winners:** England
* **Golden Boot:** Emilian van Gaal (Netherlands)
* **Silver Boot:** Thomas Muller (Germany)
* **Bronze Boot:** Jacob Lawrence (England)
* **Golden Glove:** Jordan Pickford (England)
* **Golden Ball:** Alexander Redd (England)
* **FIFA Young Player Award:** Conor Atwell (England)
* **FIFA Fair Play Trophy:** Roessen
* **Goal of the Tournament:** Mason Mount (England for England vs Spain)

## FIFA Team of the Tournament (4-3-3)

The following players were announced for the FIFA Team of the Tournament.

* **GK:** Jordan Pickford (England)
* **DEF:** Ayoze Sánchez (Spain)
* **DEF:** Daniel French (England)
* **DEF:** Jurgen Morgenrot (Germany)
* **DEF:** Luke Shaw (England)
* **MID:** Mason Mount (England)
* **MID:** Thomas Muller (Germany)
* **MID:** Robby Hecht (Roessen)
* **FWD:** Alexander Redd (England)
* **FWD:** Josep Puig Arbones (Spain)
* **FWD:** Emilian van Gaal (Netherlands)