World Cup 2022: What is new in Qatar 2022

Qatar 2022, the first-ever FIFA World Cup to be hosted in the Middle East, will bring along with it a few brand-new changes.

The Qatar World Cup, which will begin in November, will also lay witness to a few ‘first-ever’ in the tournament history. | Photo Credit: Darko Bandic

Qatar 2022, the first-ever FIFA World Cup to be hosted in the Middle East, will bring along with it a few brand-new changes.

Here are those new elements:

Semi-automated offside technology

FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar is set to have a new addition in gameplay with the use of semi-automated offside technology for the first time in a World Cup.

“Semi-automated offside technology is an evolution of the VAR systems that have been implemented across the world,” said FIFA President Gianni Infantino.

The workflow of semi-automated offside technology and the connected ball technology has been successfully trialled at numerous test events and live at FIFA tournaments, including the FIFA Arab Cup 2021 and the FIFA Club World Cup 2021.

During these matches, the new technology was able to support the video match officials by helping them to make more accurate and reproducible offside decisions in a shorter period of time.

Five Substitutions

A practice introduced after Covid-19, the option for a team to make up to five substitutions every game, instead of three, will make its debut in the Qatar World Cup.

The International Football Association Board announced this decision in June. The shift from three to five substitutes per game was originally done to protect players during the pandemic and was widely adopted in club football. 

This change will provide managers with an added tactical tool to use during the World Cup. 

26-player rosters

Following the five-subs rule, in this World Cup, teams are allowed to have a 26-man squad, instead of the usual 23. 

The expansion of squads was a feature experimented on at the European Championship and Copa America. This was done so to provide teams with moving space in case of a Covid-19 outbreak. 

Women Referees

For the first time in the history of the FIFA Men’s World Cup, games will be officiated by a woman referee. In fact, among the 36 referees for the tournament, there are three women – Yamashita Yoshimi, Salima Mukansanga and Stephanie Frappart. 

In addition, Neuza Back, Karen Diaz Medina and Kathryn Nesbitt also head to the World Cup as three of the 69 assistant referees.