Welcome to the Racing Post’s 2022 World Cup betting guide

IT’S usually at this time of year when some people agonise over whether it is too early to start playing Christmas songs, but for football fans the next month could really be the most wonderful time of the year.

The 2022 World Cup is an unusual pre-Yuletide treat to savour and it promises to be an enthralling four weeks, despite being a journey into the unknown for many of us.

For starters, as I’m sure you’re only too well aware of, it’s taking place in the middle of the season, almost five months after a ‘usual’ World Cup would have been held, and it’s also happening in the Middle East for the first time.

Add into the mix a wide-open tournament with no outstanding favourite to be crowned world champion in Lusail on December 18, and it might be worth getting the crackers out early.

Last week marked my tenth year at the Racing Post and a lot has changed since then. But we hope that this betting guide to Qatar 2022 is just as informative – and filled with a winner or two – as it has ever been.

We’ve got 80 pages of insightful tipping from the best in the business, extensive guides to all 32 World Cup teams, an unrivalled stats package and expert analysis.

So sit back and relax because Christmas really has come early this year.