This article is part of our World Cup series.
The 2022 World Cup begins Nov. 20 and RotoWire will be releasing a steady stream of betting and fantasy content leading up to the tournament, most of which can be found on our World Cup hub.
These are 10 key facts ahead of the Nov. 20 kickoff between Qatar and Senegal, let's dive in.
5 -- Brazil Championships
It's been 20 years since Brazil took home the World Cup championship, but the South American country holds the record for most tournament wins, one ahead of Germany. Given the time since their last win, most Brazil fans will be more focused on the country's disappointment when it failed to win back in 2014 as the host nation, as well as 2018 as a favorite. Despite the recent lack of success, Brazil remains the No. 1 ranked team heading into the tournament and it will be their competition to lose.
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10 -- Thomas Muller World Cup Goals
Germany's Thomas Muller leads all active players for the most goals scored in the World Cup, though he remains well behind countryman Miroslav Klose for the all-time record (16). The veteran forward was actually held off the scoresheet at the 2018 World Cup, with all 10 goals having come in the prior two tournaments, including 2010 when he won the Golden Boot. Both Uruguay's Luis Suarez and Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo trail Muller with seven tallies apiece.
6 -- Golden Boot Winning Total
In each of the previous two tournaments, six was the goal total of the eventual Golden Boot winner with Harry Kane and James Rodriguez securing the trophies in 2018 and 2014, respectively. As mentioned above, Muller won the title back in 2010 but needed the assists tiebreaker with two other players also reaching the five-goal threshold. According to recent history and the odds, it will likely take another six-goal performance to win the Golden Boot in Qatar.
1 -- Arab Host Nations
Probably the most talked about aspect of this World Cup is that it is being hosted in Qatar, which has necessitated a shift from being a summer tournament to a winter competition. It's resulted in domestic leagues around the world being forced into shutdowns and putting even more pressure on players in the lead up to the late November start.
32 -- Number of Teams
Since 1998, the World Cup has featured 32 teams qualifying for the tournament, but this will be the last tournament under those limits. No doubt with money as a factor, the soccer regulator has opted to increase the number of qualified teams to 48 and allow 32 teams, rather than 16, to make it into the knockout round. Say goodbye to what seemed like a perfect number of teams competing on a world stage.
8 -- Combined World Cups for Messi/Ronaldo
Two generational talents in Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi could be heading into their fifth and final tournaments, having each played in four straight World Cups. Neither player has been able to power his national team to a title during their international careers, with Messi coming closest back in 2014 when Argentina lost in the finals to Germany. However, as usual, both Argentina and Portugal are near the top of the charts in terms of odds to win it.
6 -- Host Nations to Win
In the history of the tournament, only six teams have managed to secure a Championship on home soil with the most recent occurrence coming in 1998 when France lifted the trophy. There is no expectation that Qatar will find itself in a similar situation this year, as they are long shots to win. Perhaps the United States, Canada or Mexico will be able to pull this off in 2026 when the trio of North American nations serves as co-hosts.
7 -- Manuel Neuer Clean Sheets
German goalkeeper Manuel Neuer will be playing in his fourth World Cup and has racked up seven clean sheets over the course of those previous tournaments. The current record is held jointly by Peter Shilton (England) and Fabien Barthez (France), who each have 10 World Cup shutouts. Looking at Group E, Neuer should have a decent chance for at least one clean sheet versus Costa Rica but may be hard-pressed to shut down Spain or Japan. Still, if Germany can make a deep run into the tournament, Neuer could have a chance to at least tie the record.
9 -- Non-European Titles
There has been 21 World Cups held since the first competition back in 1930 and non-European countries have only won nine of those competitions: Brazil (five), Argentina (two) and Uruguay (two). It last occurred back in 2002 when Brazil took home the trophy in Japan with Europe dominating the last 20 years. Brazil enter the 2022 World Cup as the favorites, hoping to end the streak.
0 -- Previous World Cup Wins
Among the eight Group favorites, only three haven't previously won a World Cup Championship: Portugal, Belgium and Netherlands. It would be a remarkable end for Ronaldo to win his country's first title in what could be his final tournament or to see the "Golden Generation" in Belgium finally achieve success. Unfortunately, these two potential winners might have to square off as early as the quarter-finals, further limiting the chances we will see a new team named winners, though perhaps this is good news for Netherlands?
*For information straight from the source, this is the tournament home page, complete with groups, coverage and the schedule.
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