While the managers are putting their squads together for the tournament in Qatar, many will be curious about the deadline for teams to release players to participate in the FIFA World Cup 2022.
Despite the fact that the Games have not yet started, the 22nd FIFA World Cup is unlike any other. For starters, the Middle East has never hosted this event before, so it has a hurdle to overcome to make millions of fans feel comfortable in their unfamiliar surroundings.
When Qatar was chosen to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup in 2010, the selection was based on the country’s commitment to host the event during the traditional months of June and July. As a result of FIFA considering the region’s average June high temperatures, the tournament was moved to the cooler months of November and December.
A serious problem arose immediately for the club game, especially in Europe, where the season usually runs from August to May. In addition to regular season matches, the last two months of the year also include several UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League group stage matches.
When will clubs release their international players for Qatar 2022?
Opening ceremonies for 2022 Qatar will take place on Sunday, November 20. For now, however, the attention of the world is focused on the managers as they assemble their teams for the tournament that starts next month.
Each of the 32 teams will submit their final 26-man rosters to FIFA by November 14; these rosters will be comprised entirely of players from the respective clubs’ filed release lists. Afterward, FIFA will release all of them at once the next day.
For instance, England will announce their World Cup roster on November 10 (a Thursday, one day before the Premier League’s last round of pre-World Cup matches). Gregg Berhalter, head coach of the United States men’s national team, has said his 26-man roster would be announced on November 9. This is four days after the 2022 MLS season concludes.
Thus, according to a story in the French sports newspaper L’Equipe, all called-up players would not be allowed to join their national teams until one week before the World Cup starts. The report adds that the 55 European national federations were informed of the decision in a letter from UEFA.
The contract states that the players would be released from their club obligations as of Monday, November 14, 2022.
