WORLD CUP – QUARTERFINALS

VegasInsider Staff Sports Betting Expert

8 minute read

World Cup 2022
Betting Sites | Odds | Free Picks |
Matchups | Venues | Betting Trends
Groups: A B C D E F G H
Knockout: Round of 16 | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Finals

Every four years, teams from each country vie to make it to the World Cup and hoist the ultimate trophy in the sport of soccer. Soccer fans wait anxiously for the beginning of one of the world’s greatest sporting competitions.

Usually, summer would mean the World Cup is getting underway; however, thanks to Qatar winning the bid to host, the schedule has been pushed back to the winter months because the heat in Qatar in the summer would make it tremendously difficult for fans and athletes.

France won the Cup in 2018 and will be trying to repeat in 2022. There has not been a back-to-back World Cup winner since Brazil in 1958 and 1962. The Brazilians have captured more Cups than any other team with five, but they have not won it in exactly 20 years – with a 2002 championship over Germany.

France is still alive and making a push to become that first repeat champion in 60 years. Let’s take a look at how they got here and the other teams still in the hunt to win the sport’s ultimate prize.

World Cup Quarterfinals Table, Fixtures & Odds

Quarterfinals Match Schedule

• Dec. 9: Croatia vs. Brazil
• Dec. 9: Netherlands vs. Argentina
• Dec 10: Morocco vs. Portugal
• Dec 10: England vs. France

When the quarterfinals begin on December 9, just eight teams will remain with the dreams of a World Cup victory remaining a potential reality. But that dream will end for four teams before the weekend is out.

World Cup Quaterinals Favorites

The current favorites:

World Cup Quarterfinals Format

Making it through to the quarterfinals involved facing all 3 of the other teams in group play and finishing as either the winner or runner up in that group. Sixteen teams advanced past group play and into the knockout round, where each team played a winner-take-all match to advance to the quarterfinals, which is where we currently stand.

What Matches Could We See in the QF?

Friday, December 9

Croatia vs. Brazil

Croatia emerged from Group F as the runner-up over a pod that included Morocco, Belgium and Canada to get to the knockout stage. They were matched up with Japan and were able to get the victory to set up a matchup between top favorites to win World Cup.

For Brazil, they came out of Group G by earning victories over Serbia and Switzerland, and a defeat against Cameroon. That set them up in the Round of 16 with a matchup against South Korea. Brazil was able to win a convincing victory 4:1 and qualify for the quarter-finals.

Netherlands vs. Argentina

The Netherlands was able to get past the host country of Qatar along with Senegal, and with a draw against Ecuador ensured first place in Group A. This led to a knockout stage match against the United States. Although US soccer has come a long way, they weren’t quite up to the task of beating the Dutch and the Netherlands finds itself in the quarterfinals for the third time in the past four World Cups.

Argentina, led in the World Cup by Lionel Messi for possibly the last time, continues to make their way towards the final. Messi would love to hoist the Cup in what could be his final run, as the 34-year-old would face an uphill climb for the 2026 World Cup. But that’s a story for another time as the Argentinians bested Group C over Saudi Arabia, Mexico and Poland (they've lost just a first game, against Saudi Arabia), and followed with a Round of 16 victory over Australia.

Saturday, December 10

Morocco vs. Portugal

Morocco is the biggest surprise of this tournament. They defeated Canada and Belgium, drew with Croatia and finished the group stage as the best team from Group F. In the round of 16, after penalties and great saves by the goalkeeper Yassine Bounou, Morocco defeated big favorite Spain. The Atlas Lions have reached this point, to advance to the quarterfinals of the World Cup for the first time in history. They will face their toughest test yet in their bid to reach the World Cup finals for the first time.

Standing in the way of Morocco is Portugal. Like Argentina’s Messi, Christiano Ronaldo is likely playing in his final World Cup. Ronaldo is attempting to add that one elusive title to his stout resume: World Cup Champion. It was an easy Group for the Portuguese, who bested Ghana, South Korea and Uruguay and was never in true danger of not making the knockout stage. Things didn’t get much more difficult with a matchup against Switzerland (6:1), but it will be interesting to see how they handle the challenge.

England vs. France

A doozy of a quarterfinal matchup sees two European powerhouses match up. First, we have the English, led by yet another star in likely his final World Cup ride, Harry Kane. England managed their way through group play to win Group B over the US, Iran and Wales to make the knockout stage. That’s where they faced Senegal, a team that was certainly happy just to make it that far, and the English dispatched of them easily to set up a must-see match. England is the fourth favorite to hoist the Cup entering the tournament.

The second favorite to hoist the Cup pre-tournament? That would be England’s quarterfinal opponent, France, who is vying for back-to-back titles. France dominated Group D over Australia, Denmark and Tunisia to advance to a difficult matchup with Poland. Many of the teams to this point haven’t been tested, but France has. We will see if their win over Poland provides an advantage over European rival England which has faced an easier road.

What Awaits the Winners?

Teams that advance past the quarterfinals won’t have a lot of time to enjoy their victories as all four teams will be back on the pitch early the following week. The winners of the Croatia/Brazil and Netherlands/Argentina matches will face each other in the semi-finals with a World Cup Finals berth on the line. That matchup will take place on Tuesday, December 13.

For the winners of the Morocco/Portugal and England/France fixtures, they’ll play the following day, Wednesday, December 14, with the same prize awaiting the victor.

World Cup Quarterfinal FAQ

What are the Quarterfinal matchups for the World Cup?

On Friday, December 9, Croatia will face Brazil and the Netherlands will battle Argentina for the right to advance to the World Cup semifinals. The following day, December 10, we will have an all-Europe day in the quarterfinals with Morocco taking on Portugal and England matching up with France.

How many teams will there be in Qatar in 2022?

32 teams will begin the World Cup with hopes of ultimately claiming the ultimate prize. All 32 squads will battle in group play but just the winner and runner-up of each group will advance to the knockout stages. Group winners will be matched with runners-up in from another group in the Round of 16, from which eight squads will advance to the quarterfinals. From there, four teams will reach the semifinals, with winners making it to the finals and losers facing off in the third-place match.

Can teams draw in the knockout stages?

In group play, teams will be awarded 3 points for a win and one point for a draw. However, once the knockout stage is reached, all matches must have a winner. If a match is tied following the 90-minute regulation period, two 15-minute extra time periods will be played. This will NOT be a sudden-death, golden goal format, but rather all 30 minutes of extra time will be played. Should the teams remain deadlocked after this period, the match will proceed to penalty kicks, where each team will send five shooters out to go one-on-one with the opposing keeper. Most goals from the five shooters will win the match.

Why is the World Cup being held in November and December?

Unlike its predecessors, which have taken place during the summer months, the World Cup will be a Winter World Cup because the weather conditions in Qatar during the summer are too extreme for soccer. This will be just the second time that the tournament will be hosted in Asia, and the first in the Middle East.

Where will tournament games be played?

The matches will be played across eight venues in the home country of Qatar. The tournament opener will be hosted at the Al Bayt Stadium while the largest of all eight stadiums, Lusail Stadium, will be venue for more matches (10) than any other, and that includes the championship match. Quarterfinals matches will be played in four different stadiums; both Al Bayt Stadium and Lusail Stadium will host a match, while the other two will be played in Education City Stadium and Al Thumama Stadium, respectively.

VegasInsider Staff

More from VegasInsider Staff