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The FIFA World Cup groups for 2022 have been confirmed, with Australia and Costa Rica being the final two countries to secure a spot in the major event.

Australia won the Asian play-off before defeating Peru on penalties in the inter-continental play-off final to qualify for the FIFA World Cup in 2022. Costa Rica overcame New Zealand 1-0 in the second inter-continental play-off match to become the final side to qualify for the tournament.

Costa Rica is in Group E with 2010 World Cup winner Spain, 2014 World Cup winner Germany, and Asian powerhouse Japan. Australia, on the other hand, is in Group D with France, Denmark, and Tunisia, the defending World Champions.

Wales made history earlier this week when they beat Ukraine 1-0 in a European play-off to qualify for their first World Cup in 64 years. They"ve been assigned to Group B, which includes England, Iran, and the United States.

In Group A, Qatar is joined by the Netherlands, Ecuador, and Senegal. On November 21, 2022, Qatar and Ecuador will play the first encounter of the tournament.

Important Rule Changes Ahead of World Cup

FIFA, football"s governing body, has mandated five replacements per game for each team in all major fixtures starting next season. At the yearly conference of the International Football Associations Board, FIFA President Gianni Infantino announced the rule modification (IFAB).

Following the enormous success of the initial run during the Covid-19 epidemic, Infantino revealed that the board has decided to implement five substitutes. He added that increasing the number of substitutions from three to five had "great support from the entire football community."

Teams will be able to expand their core strength from 12 to 15 as a result of this rule adjustment. This could have an impact on the number of squad players permitted per team in the FIFA World Cup. Traditionally, each side is permitted a maximum of 23 players in their roster, however it is likely that this time around, the squad number will be increased to 25 players.

The development of a "3D offside detector," which is scheduled to be deployed for the 2022 Fifa World cup in Qatar later this year, is another major update from the meeting. Infantino stated that the final decision on the technology"s installation will be taken after consultation with specialists.

Pierluigi Collina, a former american football referee and current FIFA referees chief, has expressed his support for the use of technology at the major event. He expressed confidence in the method and expressed hope that it will be implemented during the 2018 World Cup.

FIFA has already tested the"semi-automatic offside" technology at last year"s Arab Cup.

"So far, we"re quite pleased," Infantino said, "and our specialists are looking into it before determining whether it will be used for the World Cup."