2022 was an exciting year for football fans all around the world. Starting with the Africa Cup of Nations, and ending with the FIFA World Cup, 2022 was a year full of incredible moments, memorable games, and unexpected storylines. It was a year that will be remembered for many years to come. Let's take a look at some of the major football events of the 2022 sports year.
Major International Football Events in 2022
While there were hundreds of football events took place worldwide, a few of them were popular. The following part will focus on the top international football events of 2022.
9 January – 6 February: 2021 Africa Cup of Nations
The Africa Cup of Nations is an international association football tournament for African countries which takes place every two years. The tournament is organized by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) and is the most prestigious tournament in African football.
The tournament is also known as the “African Nations Cup,” and it is the most watched football competition in the continent. Although this tournament was supposed to take place in 2021, it was postponed to 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
All 54 member countries of the CAF are eligible to enter the tournament and compete for the Africa Cup of Nations title. Out of the 54 countries, only 24 teams get to play in the tournament.
The tournament is divided into two stages. The first is a group stage, in which all participating nations are divided into six groups of four teams each. Each team plays the other teams in their group in a round-robin format. The top two teams in each group advance to the knockout stage, which is a single-elimination tournament.
The rules of the tournament are the same as those used in FIFA’s official international competitions. In addition, the CAF has implemented its own rules, such as the use of additional referees and the introduction of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR).
Host:
This year Cameroon hosted the tournament.
Champions:
Senegal won the 2021 African Nations Cup against Egypt. They won the game by 4-2 through a penalty shootout as both teams failed to score during the regular gameplay. It was Senegal’s first Africa Cup of Nations. However, they also appeared final two more times in 2002 and 2019.
Awards:
Man of the Competition: Sadio Mané (Senegal)
Golden Boot: Vincent Aboubakar (Cameroon) (8 goals)
Best Goalkeeper: Édouard Mendy (Senegal)
Best Young Player: Issa Kaboré (Burkina Faso)
Fair Play Award: Senegal.
Read More: AFCON Championship 2021: Senegal defeat Egypt to win Africa Cup of Nations
20 January – 6 February: 2022 AFC Women’s Asian Cup
The AFC Women’s Asian Cup is an international football tournament organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for women’s national teams from Asia. It is held every four years and is the women’s equivalent of the men’s AFC Asian Cup. The tournament determines the continental champion of Asia.
The competition features 12 teams from the women’s football teams of the AFC. Qualification is determined by a continental qualification tournament held one year before the tournament. The tournament consists of a group stage, knockouts, quarterfinals, semifinals, and a final.
Host:
The tournament is organized by the AFC, with the final hosted by a different Asian country each time. With the most recent edition being the 2022 AFC Women’s Asian Cup held in India. The next edition of the tournament is scheduled to take place in 2026.
Champion:
The current champion is China, who won the 2022 edition.
Awards:
Most Valuable Player: Wang Shanshan (China)
Top Scorer: Sam Kerr (Australia) (7 goals)
Best goalkeeper: Zhu Yu (China)
Fairplay Award: South Korea.
Read More: AFC Women's Asian Cup: Bangladesh suffer another embarrassing defeat against Iran
1 June: 2022 Finalissima
It is an annual international football tournament organized by CONMEBOL and UEFA. It was first played in 1985 as a successor to the Intercontinental Cup. The tournament features the champions of the two major continental champions, Copa America and UEFA European Championship. The tournament is organized by CONMEBOL and UEFA.
It has been rebranded as Finalissima, and the most recent game was played between 2021 Copa America winner Argentina and 2020 Euro Winner Italy. In this game, Argentina won easily by 3-0 goals. Lautaro Martínez, Angelo Di Maria and Paulo Dybala scored for the Albiceleste.
The last Finalissima match was held in 1993. Argentina won the championship by defeating the defending Euro champions Denmark.
Host:
England
Champions and Awards:
After almost 29 years, Argentina is the champion again; this time, they beat Italy. Messi won the man of the match award.
Read More: Messi inspires Argentina to 3-0 Finalissima win over Italy
6–31 July: UEFA Women’s Euro 2022
UEFA Women’s Euro is the main competition in European women’s football, organized by UEFA. The tournament is held every four years, and the 2022 edition took place in England.
It is a competition between the national teams of the member associations of UEFA and consists of a qualifying round and a final tournament. The qualifying round is held among the 52 countries, while only 16 teams can play in the final tournament, which is held over a two-week period.
Host:
England
Champion:
This year England and Germany played in the final and England won the trophy. England won the game by 2-1 goal in 90 minutes of regular game time.
Award:
Player of the Tournament: Beth Mead (England)
Young Player of the Tournament: Lena Oberdorf (Germany)
The goal of the Tournament: Alessia Russo (vs Sweden).
Read More: UEFA Women's EURO 2022 Final: England vs Germany preview, lineups, prediction
8–30 July: 2022 Copa America Femenina
Copa America Femenina (also known as the South American Women’s Football Championship) is an international women’s football tournament organized by the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL). It is the oldest international women’s football tournament and was first held in 1991. It is held every four years and is a qualifying tournament for the FIFA Women’s World Cup and the Olympic Games.
The tournament consists of ten teams from nine countries across South America. They are Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay. The teams are split into two groups of five and play each other once in a round-robin format.
The two teams with the most points in each group advance to the knockout stage. The knockout stage consists of the semifinals and the final. The tournament is organized and managed by CONMEBOL, with FIFA providing technical support.
Host:
2022 Copa America Femenina was held in Columbia.
Champion:
Brazil and Columbia were the two finalists. Brazil won the tournament by a 2-1 goal scored by Debinha from penalty.
Awards:
Golden Ball: Linda Caicedo (Colombia)
Top scorer: Yamila Rodríguez (Argentina) (6 goals)
Golden Glove: Lorena (Brazil)
Fair Play: Chile.
Read More: Bangladesh to host group matches of U-20 Women's Asian Cup
10–28 August: 2022 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup
The FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup is an international football tournament organized by FIFA for female players under the age of 20. It is held every two years and features teams from around the world competing to be crowned world champions.
The tournament features 16 teams that are divided into four groups four. The top two teams from each group advance to the knockout stage, which consists of the quarterfinals, semifinals, and finals.
Host:
The 2022 edition of the U-20 Women’s World Cup was hosted by Costa Rica.
Champion:
The top four teams were Spain, Japan, Brazil, and the Netherlands.
Spain won the tournament against Japan by a 3-1 goal; Gabarro scored one goal, and Paralluelo scored two goals for Spain. On the other hand, Amano scored the only goal for Japan.
Awards:
Golden Ball: Maika Hamano (Japan)
Golden Boot: Inma Gabarro (Spain) (8 goals)
Golden Glove: Txell Font (Spain)
FIFA Fair Play Award: Japan.
Read More: SAFF Women's Champs: Girls bring glory to Bangladesh
6-19 September: 2022 SAFF Women's Championship in Nepal
The SAFF Women's Championship is the main association football competition for women's national teams in South Asia. It is organized by SAFF and was first held in 2010. Seven south Asian countries, India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Bhutan, and Pakistan, join the tournament. It is held every two years, and the most recent one took place in 2022 in Nepal.
The tournament format includes a group stage, semifinal, and final. For the group stage, the teams are divided into two groups, including four teams in one group and three in another. The top two from each group proceed to the semifinal.
Host:
Nepal
Champion:
Bangladesh won the 2022 SAFF tournament by defeating Nepal in the final. And Bangladesh made an unforgettable history by defeating Nepal 3-1. This high-voltage final match was held at the Dasharath Stadium in Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal.
Bangladesh played well from the beginning of the match, and Nepal was practically suppressed. Bangladesh has never been a champion, even though they have participated in SAFF Cup many times before.
Awards
Most Valuable Player: Sabina Khatun (Bangladesh)
Best Goalkeeper: Rupna Chakma (Bangladesh)
Top scorer: Sabina Khatun (Bangladesh)
Fair Play Award: Bangladesh.
Read More: winners of SAFF Women's Football Championship 2022
11–30 October: 2022 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup
It is an international football tournament organized by FIFA for female players under the age of 17. It is held every two years and features 16 teams from around the world. The 16 teams are divided into four groups four. The top two teams from each group proceed to the knockout stage, which consists of the quarterfinals, semifinals, and final.
Host:
This year the tournament took place in India.
Champion:
Spain became the champion by defeating Colombia.
Awards
Golden Ball: Vicky López (Spain)
Golden Boot: Loreen Bender (Germany) (4 goals)
Golden Glove: Sofía Fuente (Spain)
FIFA Fair Play Award: Japan.
Read More: 6 Female Referees to Create History in Qatar World Cup.
20 November – 18 December: 2022 FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup is an international men’s football tournament that is held every four years by the governing body of soccer, FIFA. It is the most prestigious soccer tournament in the world, with 32 national teams competing for the title of World Champions.
The teams are divided into eight groups of four, with the top two teams from each group advancing to the knockout stage. The knockout stage consists round of 16, quarterfinals, semifinals, and finale.
Host:
This year the World Cup was hosted by Qatar. This Middle Eastern country was the first Muslim country to host this event called the Greatest Show on Earth. Although Qatar was the host nation, they were not the favorite team in the World Cup.
Champion and Runner-Up:
Lionel Messi’s Argentina, Neymar’s Brazil, and Mbappe’s France were the most favorites to win the tournament.
Argentina and France played the well-deserved breathtaking final. As France is the current champion, their mission was to defend the World Cup. However, they failed, and Argentina won it after 36 years. Argentina defeated France in a tiebreaker shootout as both teams had a 3-3 score until the 120th minute.
Messi was the main attraction throughout the tournament, and he did not disappoint the fans worldwide. Behind Argentina’s third World Cup title, Messi contributed the most. He was also in the fight for the Golden Boot with seven goals and three assists. As a result, Messi won the golden ball award. He won the award for the second time in FIFA World Cup. No other player in football history has this record.
Awards:
Golden Ball: Lionel Messi (Argentina)
Golden Boot: Kylian Mbappé (France) (8 goals)
Golden Glove: Emiliano Martínez (Argentina)
FIFA Young Player Award: Enzo Fernández
FIFA Fair Play Award: England.
Read More: FIFA World Cup 2022: Messi’s Records, Argentina’s Road to Victory
Final Words
2022 Fotball year review shows that the year was full of excitement and surprises for football fans, with many memorable moments. From the impressive achievements of the World Cup champions to the inspiring stories of the underdogs, 2022 was a year that captured the hearts of soccer fans around the world. The title of SAFF Women's Championship is a great achievement for Bangladesh and the win will encourage the women footballers of the country in the upcoming years. 2022 was a year to remember, and we can’t wait to see what the future of football holds.