Catch-up on all the action from the FIFA World Cup 2022™ with highlights, mini matches and full replays now on the
Football’s global governing body believe around five billion people engaged with the World Cup across several devices and platforms, with Nielsen totalling 93.6 million posts, a cumulative reach of 262 billion and 5.95 billion engagements.
Qatar also welcomed 3.4 million fans through the gates on the ground – up from three million in 2018 – with the most goals scored (172) in World Cup history, surpassing the previous highest total of 171 set in 1998 and 2014.
Lusail Stadium played host to three matches in Qatar, where the final’s 88,966 attendance figure became the highest since USA 1994 when Brazil played Italy in front of 94,194.
Argentina’s subsequent victory over France was said to have been watched by almost 1.5 billion people around the world as Lionel Messi finally got his hands on the missing piece of silverware in his illustrious career.
Messi’s two goals against France also saw him become the first player to score in four successive knockout matches since the round of 16 was introduced at the 1986 World Cup, with his appearance in the final also surpassing Lothar Matthaus’ mark for the most at the tournament.
Long-time rival Cristiano Ronaldo, too, etched his name in the history books, having found the back of the net in Portugal’s opening game to become the only man to score at five World Cups (2006, 2010, 2014, 2018 and 2022).
The 2022 edition was held together by the work of 180,000 accredited people; 20,000 of which being volunteers and 10,000 from the media, with audio-descriptive commentary available in English and Arabic for blind and partially sighted fans, along with sensory rooms accessible in three of the eight stadiums.
FIFA hailed last month's World Cup a 'formidable' one - here are some other notable achievements to come from it:
- Stephanie Frappart became the first woman in World Cup history to referee a finals match. Together with assistants Neuza Back and Karen Diaz, she composed the first-ever female trio to officiate in the tournament
- The eight group stage winners included teams from four different confederations for only the third time, and the first in 20 years (1986, 2002, 2022)
- Three teams from the AFC reached the round of 16 for the first time in World Cup history
- Qatar 2022 was the first time an African team made it to the semi-final, with Morocco’s incredible campaign uniting the Middle East and Arab world
- 1.85 million visitors attended the FIFA Fan Festival in Doha which had its very own anthem for the first time – “Tukoh Taka” was one of the nine songs of the first-ever World Cup Official Soundtrack, which generated 450 million views on YouTube
- In a record-breaking first, FIFA+ live-streamed the entire tournament in Brazil, partnering with the likes of YouTube streamer Casimiro and Brazilian legend Ronaldo to deliver an innovative and engaging product to a new generation of fans
- All global and regional sponsorship packages were sold out, with the 32 commercial affiliates activating more than 600 special marketing programmes
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