For the first time in history, the FIFA World Cup will be held in the winter, from November 18 to December 21, rather than the summer.

The dates for the 2022-2023 Champions League have been confirmed by UEFA, with readjustments in scheduling made because of the Qatar World Cup 2022 that will be starting in November of this year.

The FIFA event is the first in history to take place in the middle of a European season, due to Qatar’s summer weather conditions. Domestic and continental sporting events will be put on hold during the winter tournament.

With just a minor tweak to their schedule, UEFA had to keep this in mind as it finalised the dates for the 2022-2023 Champions League. The initial group-stage matches will be played on September 6 or 7, a week sooner than usual, according to the European football’s governing body, with the second round of matches planned a week later. 

The group stage will last until November 1 and 2, about a month earlier than the regular season. Last season, the last matches of the group stage did not take place until early December.

The Champions League will then take a mid-season hiatus, as is typical, in order to accommodate the World Cup, before knockout matches commence.

The round of 16 will take place between February 14 and 21, with the return legs taking place between March 7 and 14.

The quarter-final matches will be held on April 11,12, 18, and 19, with the final four matches taking place less than a month later on May 9, 10, 16, and 17. 

The final will be held at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul on 10 June 2023, which is a month later than usual.

Real Madrid will look to defend its title, which it won for the 14th time against Liverpool in late May in Paris. In the interim, the Premier League will be represented by four players for the new season.

First winter World Cup

For the first time in history, the FIFA World Cup will be held in the winter, from November 18 to December 21, rather than the summer. Summer temperatures in Qatar range from 40 to 50 degrees celsius, making a summer competition unfeasible.

The competition will begin on Monday 21 November and end less than a month later, with the final scheduled for Sunday 18 December – also coinciding with Qatar’s National Day. 

The FIFA World Cup group stage will take place from 21 November to 2 December. The round of 16 matches will be held on 3-6 December, following the completion of the group round. The tournament’s quarterfinals will be held on 9 and 10 December. 

The semi-finals will take place on 13 and 14 December, with the third-place match and the final taking place on 18 December.