As World Cup nears, some giants won't be on the plane to Qatar

THERE are just a little over 7 months to go until this year's Fifa World Cup begins in Qatar. It's the first time the quadrennial football tournament is being staged in the Middle East, and it's also the first to be held at the end of the calendar year (Nov 21 to Dec 18) instead of its usual June-July slot.

Twenty-nine of 32 participating nations have already punched their ticket to the showpiece in Doha after the latest round of qualifiers earlier this week, with the remaining 3 spaces to be filled after the final round of playoffs in June.

But there are many powerhouses of the sport that won't be on the plane to the Qatari capital, after they fluffed their lines in the qualifying campaign. Here are 6 football giants that are missing out on the sport's grandest event.

Italy

The equation was simple: Defeat minnows North Macedonia in a playoff on home soil in Palermo, and Italy would be through to the World Cup.

But even this seemingly straightforward task last weekend proved beyond the European champions. The Azzurri bombarded the North Macedonians with an incredible 32 shots, only to concede a goal in injury-time in what will go down as one of the biggest upsets in sporting history.

The Italians missed out on the last World Cup in 2018, and they won't be at the party this time either. It just goes to show once again that the ball is round and anything can happen in the Beautiful Game.

Sweden

A loss to Poland in last week's playoff means Sweden - quarterfinalists at the last World Cup in 2018 - won't appear at the tournament this year.

It also means that their all-time top goalscorer and most charismatic player - the 40-year-old AC Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic - will likely not play at another World Cup before he hangs up his boots.

Colombia

An extremely talented Colombian team turned out to be among the biggest disappointments of the South American qualifying section, finishing sixth in the 10-team group behind Ecuador and Peru.

Their biggest problem was the failure to win matches, as evidenced by their 8 draws in 18 games.

The likes of James Rodriguez, Davinson Sanchez, Luis Diaz and David Ospina are among the household names that won't be on the plane to Qatar.

Chile

The Chileans did not make the cut for a second successive World Cup, having ended their qualifying campaign in a dismal seventh position.

Winners of the Copa America in 2015 and 2016, Chile were in good shape at the midway point of qualification, but went on to lose 4 of their last 5 games.

It's the end of the road for Chile's so-called "Golden Generation" such as Alexis Sanchez, Arturo Vidal and Claudio Bravo, all of whom are in their 30s and could make way for younger players soon.

Egypt

The year 2022 is definitely one to forget for Egyptian football fans. After the Pharoahs lost the African Cup of Nations final to Senegal on penalties in February, they lost to the same opponents this week - also via a penalty shootout - in the final qualifying match for the World Cup.

Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah, who missed one of the penalties on Tuesday (Mar 29), has already hinted he might retire from the national team after this latest setback.

Nigeria

Once one of the heavyweights of African football, Nigeria are now licking their wounds after losing to Ghana in their 2-legged playoff earlier this week.

There was a riot at the stadium in Abuja as Nigerian fans - who arrived in droves expecting a big party to celebrate qualification - invaded the pitch and fought with police officers.

Among the Nigerian stars who will be watching the World Cup from their living room sofa are Leicester City trio Kelechi Iheanacho, Wilfred Ndidi and Ademola Lookman, and Napoli's Victor Osimhen.