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According to reports, FIFA is considering conducting pre-match penalty shootouts for the 2026 World Cup.
It has already been decided that 48 teams will participate in the 2026 edition of the tournament, rising from 32 in the 2022 edition.
The governing body has also decided that there will be 16 groups of three teams in the tournament. However, the issue with the format is that two teams will know the points tally of the third team before the final match day.
Two of the top teams will go through from each of the 16 groups, consisting of a 32-team knockout stage.
Hence, to avoid collusion, FIFA is considering a penalty shootout to award a bonus point to the teams.
However, the issue with doing that is teams can still know which outcome will favor them if the shootout is contested at the end of the match.
FIFA is thus considering introducing the shootout policy before a match commences.
It will certainly be a unique circumstance for a game to be played in. Whether the rule gets implemented and whether it affects league football across the world remains to be seen.
Which teams have already qualified for the knockout stages of the 2022 FIFA World Cup?
The group stages of the 2022 FIFA World Cup are still ongoing. However, a few teams have already qualified for the knockout stages.
Group A's fixtures are complete. The Netherlands have topped the group and will face Group B runners-up the USA. Group A runners-up Senegal will take on Group B winners England.
Group C winners and defending world champions France will take on Group D runners-up Poland in the Round of 16. Group D winners Argentina will face Group C runners-up Australia in the knockout stages.
Apart from these teams, Brazil and Portugal have also booked their tickets for the knockout stages of the 2022 World Cup. Both teams won their opening two games of the tournament.
The knockout stages of the tournament will commence on December 3 with the game between the Netherlands and the USA.
