World Cup 2022: Which teams have qualified for Qatar tournament

The road to World Cup 2022 has run its course, with the qualification stages having been completed ahead of the tournament proper, which takes place in November and December of this year.

And with the map to the finals having been finished, the identities of the teams participating in the tournament are now known.

GOAL has what you need to know about which teams have qualified for World Cup 2022.

World Cup 2022 qualified teams

Qatar became the first nation to qualify for the 2022 World Cup automatically as hosts when they won the bid to stage the tournament. It is their first appearance in the competition having never previously qualified for the finals.

Germany were the second team to qualify for the tournament after defeating North Macedonia in October 2021 and topping Group J.

Denmark also qualified in October after their 1-0 victory over Austria, cementing their status as Group F winners.

Brazil became the first South American nation to qualify after beating Colombia 1-0, ensuring their status as the only country to reach every World Cup finals continues.

Belgium qualified as Group E winners, while France also were confirmed as Group D winners on the same day. Croatia qualified as winners of Group H, beating Russia 1-0 in a winner-takes-all clash, while Spain topped Group B. Serbia, meanwhile, qualified at the expense of Portugal in Group A after beating Cristiano Ronaldo and Co. in the final qualifier.

England qualified on November 15 with their final qualifying game against San Marino – an emphatic 10-0 victory – which also involved Harry Kane scoring four goals. Switzerland secured automatic qualification on the same day as Group C winners, ahead of Italy.

Netherlands booked their spot in Qatar with the final play-off slot on November 16 through a 2-0 win over Norway. Argentina qualified in the evening through a draw against Brazil and a Chile defeat to Ecuador.

Iran and South Korea qualified in 2022 as the top two finishing teams in the third round of Group A in AFC qualifying, while Japan and Saudi Arabia followed in March, as the top two teams in Group B.

Ecuador and Uruguay qualified on March 24 to become the third and fourth CONMEBOL teams to book their World Cup places.

Canada became the first team from the CONCACAF region to book their place in the finals and, in doing so, secured a World Cup spot for the first time since 1986.

Ghana qualified at the expense of Nigeria, with the Black Stars making it to the World Cup for the fourth time in their history.

Senegal's road to the World Cup overcame Egypt in a rematch of the Africa Cup of Nations final and, once again, it was Sadio Mane and co. that topped Liverpool team-mate Mohamed Salah and Egypt to seal their spot in Qatar.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal are also World Cup-bound after topping North Macedonia in their play-off clash.

Poland booked their spot via a play-off as well, taking down Sweden to earn a ticket to Qatar.

Both Tunisia and Morocco also ensured they'll be in Qatar as topped Mali and DR Congo, respectively. Cameroon, meanwhile, advanced with a last-gasp winner against Algeria as Karl Toko Ekambi scored in the 124th minute to become a national hero.

Rivals Mexico and the United States booked their spots in the final round of CONCACAF's World Cup qualifiers, with the latter making it back to the tournament after missing out in 2018.

Wales reached their first World Cup in 64 years after beating Ukraine 1-0 in an emotional play-off clash at the Cardiff City Stadium on June 5.

The first of June's intercontinental play-off saw Australia beat Peru on penalties following a 0-0 draw in Qatar, and they were followed by Costa Rica, who beat New Zealand 1-0 to secure the 32nd and final spot.

How many teams qualify for World Cup 2022?

A total of 32 teams compete in the World Cup and 31 must qualify for the tournament, with Qatar qualifying automatically as hosts.

AFC (Asia) have an allocation of four or five teams* competing in the World Cup finals.

CAF (Africa) are allocated five teams, with CONCACAF (North, Central America and Caribbean) having three or four.

CONEMBOL (South America) have four or five teams competing.

UEFA (Europe) have the most teams able to qualify, with 13 spots.

OFC (Oceania) have zero or one spot.

*Inter-confederation play-offs are contested at the end of the qualification phase to determine how many teams from each confederation will end up competing in the 2022 finals.

World Cup 2022 qualification schedule

World Cup 2022 dates

World Cup 2022 is set to take place in Qatar from November 21, 2022–December 18, 2022.

When is the World Cup group stage draw?

The draw for the 2022 World Cup group stage was made on April 1, 2022.

It was held in Doha, Qatar, with 32 teams being allocated to eight groups of four.

Read more about the draw here.