This year 2022 will be a World Cup like no other; more teams than ever before and in a region that’s never hosted a World Cup. As a former resident of Qatar for over seven years, it’s also of special interest to me to see if this World Cup is going to be the best ever, as claimed by the organisers.

Anyone concerned about searing heat and humid conditions will have never visited Qatar in November. The afternoon temperatures will be warm but not roasting and you might need a jacket in the evening. Doha, where the majority of matches will be played, is a coastal city and so the ocean breeze will make conditions rather pleasant. The timing of the World Cup 2022 Qatar which is being played in the European winter is fascinating and could throw up all manner of unpredictable results.

There are two ways to look at it, teams with mostly European based players will be in prime physical condition and not running on empty after a long season. On the flipside, the utterly relentless schedule for some of these players with back to back weeks of trying to cram in league and European action could lead to some major injuries in the run up to the tournament. National teams will also have minimal time to prepare before the event kicks off and so sides with more established first teams may be at a slight advantage. Time will tell which of these theories actually hold true.

In the meantime, I’ve taken a look at the betting markets as it stands to pick out some potential value plays: