Top 5 Stories at the Close of Group Stage

World Cup Diaries

The group stage of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar has come to a stunning close. While the world waits for the thrill of the knockout stage, the opening phase of the tournament was rich with drama and history-making moments.

This is especially true for the African and Asian teams in the tournament, and sides that represented Arab and Muslim societies in the Middle East’s first ever World Cup. After the first kickoff, journalistic double standards and hypocrisy emanating from western Europe took a backseat to the inspiring play on Qatar’s pitches, which served as a powerful stage for teams that raised the spirit of non-European teams and the stature of the nations they represented.

More than football, the drama unfolding atop and around the fields of play was stunning theatre. Sport and politics converged, creating irresistible theater that produced a string of historic moments and memorable scenes.

To mark the end of the group stage, I have compiled a list of the Top 5 Stories from the World Cup in Qatar thus far. There were many compelling events and storylines to choose from, but these five – I believe – may stand as the most memorable and momentous.

---

#1 - Morocco Becomes First African Team to Top World Cup Group in 21st Century

Morocco also holds this distinction for the 20th Century, when the Atlas Lions put Africa on the World Cup by winning their group in the 1986 World Cup in Mexico. This year, Morocco won a Group (F) featuring European giant and favorite Belgium and 2018 World Cup finalist Croatia, claiming the top spot against these formidable giants and eve more odds. Morocco also claimed the top spot on this list because of the significance of their overall performance, and the historic 2-0 upset over Belgium – home to approximately 500,000 members of the Moroccan diaspora, who are consistent targets of racism and relegated to second-class citizenship.

#2 – Palestinian Flags Everywhere

Despite thirty-two other nations competing in the World Cup, the most prominent flag waving in Qatar is the Palestinian flag. The sheer prominence and ubiquity of Palestinian flags stands as a defiant statement to the world, mainly the West, where football leagues and tournaments have prohibited the emblem and denied fans from waving it in stadiums. It is also a refreshing rebuttal against the high horse of human rights marauding western media outlets have done leading up to the tournament, which righteously protest in favor of legitimate human rights concern while the Palestine exceptions stands as a stark reminder of their hypocrisy. Palestine may not be competing for football glory in Qatar, but the players of Arab and Muslim nations, fans in the stands, and the hosts of the tournament themselves, have raised the Palestinian flag as a lurid and lasting symbol of the 2022 World Cup.

#3 – Japan Beats Germany and Spain, Wins “Group of Death”

If forced to pick one team that won the group stage of the World Cup on and off the pitch, the runaway answer would be Japan. Japanese fans were the darling of the tournament, colorfully dressed during the matches and cheering on their charge to make sure their “countrymen on the field didn’t feel alone.” After the matches, Japanese fans cleaned up the stadiums, matching the energy of their team that cleaned up on the field. In a group many called the “group of death” because it featured powerhouses Spain and Germany, Japan were overwhelmingly picked to exit early in the tournament. However, Takuma Asano, Ao Tanaka, and company had other plans, upsetting Germany 2-1 in the opener and Spain 2-1 in the final game, sending the former back to Berlin and winning the hearts of fans in Qatar and the world over.

#4 – Saudi Arabia Shocks Argentina

I was not alive when Muhammad Ali knocked out George Foreman in the “Rumble in the Jungle,” but I will always remember witnessing Saudi Arabia shocking the world on November 22, 2022. Two days into the tournament itself, the overlooked and underwhelming Saudi side trotted onto the field staring Lionel Messi, arguably the world’s best player, and those iconic light blue-and-white striped Argentine kits in the face. Those images alone would have defeated most teams, and that fate seem sealed after Messi himself netted a penalty kick ten minutes into play. But things got rowdy after that first goal for Saudi, lifting the green shirts to play a spell of inspiring football that climaxed with a sublime strike by Salem Aldawsari in the fifty-third minute of the match. He capped the determinative strike with a flip, then summersaulted Saudi Arabia into history with a win that will forever live in World Cup upset lore.

#5 – Senegal Shines Without Sadio Mane

With Sadio Mane - Senegal would be more than a contender, but a legitimate dark-horse to win Africa’s first ever World Cup. The Lions of Teranga, however, were forced to play without their talisman Mane – who finished second in 2022 FIFA’s Player of the Year. Led by Aliou Cissé, the charismatic coach who led Senegal to the World Cup quarterfinal in 2002, a run which featured a seismic upset over former colonists and champion France, Senegal impressed. With victories over host Qatar and South American side Ecuador, Senegal earned two of Africa’s seven group stage victories and led the continent into the knockout stages. With their top mane down, Cissé lifted his team up and toward what may be another historic run.

---

Reducing the theatre of drama that was the World Cup group stage into a list of five standout feats is no easy task. Particularly for a stage that witnessed African teams winning more aggregate games than ever before (seven), and the Muslim World rising to the occasion and hosting one of the most vibrant World Cups in a long time. The good news, we’re only halfway done.

Khaled A. Beydoun is a law professor, public intellectual, and author of the forthcoming book The New Crusades: Islamophobia and the Global War on Muslims.