Fans all across the world are getting psyched for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar to witness their national team play on the largest platform. In just a few days, 32 teams will compete for international soccer's highest honor, and each will enter the tournament certain that they have a good shot of winning.
The 2022 World Cup will be hosted in the winter instead of the summer, but it won't be long until fans can put their concerns about the change of venue aside and enjoy the great soccer that will be on show.
Once every four years, sports fans from all around the world gather for one of the greatest spectacles in the history of their favorite game.
Despite the World Cup being played every four years since 1930 (excluding 1942 and 1946 due to World War II), only eight teams have ever won the trophy.
Why is there such a huge buildup of excitement for the World Cup when soccer season lasts for nine months out of the year?
We'll examine 5 of the most compelling arguments for the World Cup's enduring appeal.
Competition Featuring the Best Players in the World
It doesn't matter if you're from Angola or America, the finest players in the world are always going to draw crowds.
Even if the team you root for on the weekend plays in a lower division, when it comes to international competition, you're watching the best of the best.
Most of the world's top teams and players compete in the World Cup every four years with the hope of winning the tournament. Because of this, fans of all different leagues may enjoy the same World Cup together.
The top European leagues (the English Premier League, Spain's La Liga, Italy's Serie A, and France's Ligue 1) provide the bulk of the World Cup participants. It's a once-in-a-lifetime chance for fans in each country to witness players they normally wouldn't be able to.
It's possible that Lionel Messi will face Kylian Mbappe of Paris Saint-Germain in one World Cup match, and that Harry Kane of England will face Weston McKennie of the United States and Juventus in another.
A World Cup is unlike any other sporting event since it has the top players in the greatest competition, all competing for the most prestigious trophy in soccer.
Complete Worldwide Game Coverage
Since soccer is a worldwide phenomenon, it makes financial sense to broadcast the World Cup to every corner of the globe. For an entire month, the World Cup is the sole focus of television networks, newspapers, radio stations, and the internet.
People who have never seen a game of soccer in their lives are rooting for Australia to make it to the final because of office sweepstakes where they pick their team out of a hat.
Fans want to see every kick, every goal, and every second of the World Cup as it unfolds, while pundits analyze each player's performance.
Each game is watched by millions of fans across the world, and reputations can be created or ruined in an hour. As the tournament proceeds, the remaining teams start planning for the final.
According to the ViaHunter; FIFA predicts that roughly 5 billion viewers will tune in throughout the tournament because Football is the most popular sport on the planet.
This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the players, and a chance for TV networks to make tens of millions of dollars. The World Cup is like having the Super Bowl every day for a month in terms of sponsorships, television rights, and advertising.
Scarcity – World Cups Are Only Held Every Four Years
Due to its rarity (it's only held every four years), the World Cup is a must-see event for sports lovers all over the world.
A player's worst nightmare is getting hurt right before the World Cup when all of their hard work and preparation might be rendered useless in an instant.
Given that most athletes can only maintain their optimum performance for a maximum of two tournaments, missing the World Cup can be devastating.
Fans who are yearning for tickets will have the time of their lives; there is nothing like being at a World Cup in person; the energy is through the roof, and the celebration lasts all day.
Those who don't often interact because of their different interests can find common ground in their passion for soccer.
It's a once-every-four-years event that brings together soccer fans from all over the world in a way that no domestic league can match: Mexicans and Welshmen sharing a hotel room, Americans and Italians.
The World Cup Is History In The Making
It's not easy to join an exclusive group of only eight teams that have ever won the World Cup. But it won’t stop nations from trying, and now and again a team surprises everyone by making a run for the trophy. In the presence of their home crowd, several countries do better than expected.
Each country's fans are well-versed in their country's history, as well as the good and poor World Cups that their country has participated in.
A World Cup is never forgotten; it becomes part of the fabric of a nation’s soccer identity; Brazilians still have nightmares about losing the 1950 World Cup to Uruguay, and that was 72 years ago! Even anything as basic as a goal, or a brilliant save, becomes part of the folklore and history.
The famous, tragic, and entirely human miss by Roberto Baggio at the 1994 USA World Cup is as much a part of the event as anything else.
To relive Italy's penalty shootout loss to Brazil, all soccer fans have to do is close their eyes and see the country's best player ever with his head bent.
And this is just one more reason why the World Cup is so widely watched: fans don't want to miss what might be the greatest game ever played. When trying to make their national team, many athletes will say everything to avoid being left off the roster, including exaggerating injuries.
The World Cup 2022 is going to be filmed for posterity, and the players are eager to have their names on the lights for the next 60 years. And they have a point; even years after the fact, reruns of the most recent World Cup are aired on TV, and legendary goals are still spoken about.
Interest in a sport is boosted by the World Cup.
One of the best things about hosting a World Cup is the influx of fresh spectators and participants. It's a self-reinforcing tale: all of a sudden, individuals who might never have paid attention to soccer before are captivated by the sport's thrill.
If their country is still in the tournament, bars, fan clubs, and even schools will start showing the games.
Young spectators are exposed to the excitement of a World Cup for the first time, and this exposure often inspires the next generation of world-class athletes.
Witnessing a World Cup for the first time inspired many of this year's players. Even those who previously showed no interest in the sport, such as senior citizens, find themselves hooked to the TV in support of their country.
Even if a country doesn't make it into the World Cup, its fans may root for another side in the tournament.
The growing interest in soccer and the World Cup as a whole can be attributed to several factors, including the increased visibility of the sport, the bringing together of fans from different cultural backgrounds, and the excitement around the tournament itself.
One nation or player usually appears to be caught red-handed at a World Cup, so the controversy is practically certain. When England midfielder David Beckham kicked out of frustration during the 1998 World Cup, the English fans and press were calling for his head for months.
In the last seconds of a match at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, Uruguay's Luis Suarez handballed on his goalline, preventing Ghana from advancing to the semifinals.
After receiving a justly earned red card, Ghana went on to lose to Uruguay in the shootout thanks to a missed penalty. Controversy and the World Cup seem made for each other.