2022 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group E

The 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification UEFA Group E was one of the ten UEFA groups in the World Cup qualification tournament to decide which teams would qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup finals tournament in Qatar.^[1] Group E consisted of five teams: Belarus, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Estonia and Wales.^[2] The teams played against each other home-and-away in a round-robin format.^[3]

The group winners, Belgium, qualified directly for the World Cup finals, while the runners-up, Wales, and the third-placed team, the Czech Republic, advanced to the second round (play-offs).

Standings

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Belgium	8	6	2	0	25	6	+19	20	Qualification for 2022 FIFA World Cup		—	3–1	3–0	3–1	8–0
2	Wales	8	4	3	1	14	9	+5	15	Advance to play-offs		1–1	—	1–0	0–0	5–1
3	Czech Republic	8	4	2	2	14	9	+5	14	Advance to play-offs via Nations League		1–1	2–2	—	2–0	1–0
4	Estonia	8	1	1	6	9	21	−12	4			2–5	0–1	2–6	—	2–0
5	Belarus	8	1	0	7	7	24	−17	3			0–1	2–3	0–2	4–2	—

Source: FIFA, UEFA
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers

Matches

The fixture list was confirmed by UEFA on 8 December 2020, the day following the draw.^[4][5][6] Times are CET/CEST,^{[note 1]} as listed by UEFA (local times, if different, are in parentheses).

24 March 2021 (2021-03-24)

20:45

Belgium	3–1	Wales
De Bruyne   22' T. Hazard   28' Lukaku   73' (pen.)	Report (FIFA) Report (UEFA)	Wilson   11'

Den Dreef, Leuven

Attendance: 0^{[7][note 2]}

Referee: Cüneyt Çakır (Turkey)

24 March 2021 (2021-03-24)

20:45

Estonia	2–6	Czech Republic
Sappinen   12' Anier   86'	Report (FIFA) Report (UEFA)	Schick   18' Barák   27' Souček   32', 43', 48' Jankto   56'

Arena Lublin, Lublin (Poland)

Attendance: 0^{[8][note 2]}

Referee: Anastasios Papapetrou (Greece)

---

27 March 2021 (2021-03-27)

18:00 (20:00 UTC+3)

Belarus	4–2	Estonia
V. Lisakovich   45' (pen.), 83' Kendysh   64' Savitski   81'	Report (FIFA) Report (UEFA)	Anier   31', 55'

Dinamo Stadium, Minsk

Attendance: 3,611^[9]

Referee: Robert Hennessy (Ireland)

27 March 2021 (2021-03-27)

20:45

Czech Republic	1–1	Belgium
Provod   50'	Report (FIFA) Report (UEFA)	Lukaku   60'

Sinobo Stadium, Prague

Attendance: 0^{[10][note 2]}

Referee: Willie Collum (Scotland)

---

30 March 2021 (2021-03-30)

20:45

Belgium	8–0	Belarus
Batshuayi   14' Vanaken   17', 89' Trossard   38', 74' Doku   42' Praet   49' Benteke   70'	Report (FIFA) Report (UEFA)

Den Dreef, Leuven

Attendance: 0^{[11][note 2]}

Referee: Donatas Rumšas (Lithuania)

30 March 2021 (2021-03-30)

20:45 (19:45 UTC+1)

Wales	1–0	Czech Republic
James   82'	Report (FIFA) Report (UEFA)

Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff

Attendance: 0^{[12][note 2]}

Referee: Ovidiu Haţegan (Romania)

---

2 September 2021 (2021-09-02)

20:45

Czech Republic	1–0	Belarus
Barák   34'	Report (FIFA) Report (UEFA)

Městský stadion v Ostravě-Vítkovicích, Ostrava

Attendance: 7,218^[13]

Referee: Srđan Jovanović (Serbia)

2 September 2021 (2021-09-02)

20:45 (21:45 UTC+3)

Estonia	2–5	Belgium
Käit   2' Sorga   83'	Report (FIFA) Report (UEFA)	Vanaken   22' Lukaku   29', 52' Witsel   65' Foket   76'

Lilleküla Stadium, Tallinn

Attendance: 6,685^[14]

Referee: Guillermo Cuadra Fernández (Spain)

---

5 September 2021 (2021-09-05)

15:00 (16:00 UTC+3)

Belarus	2–3	Wales
V. Lisakovich   29' (pen.) Sedko   31'	Report (FIFA) Report (UEFA)	Bale   6' (pen.), 69' (pen.), 90+3'

Central Stadium, Kazan (Russia)^[15]

Attendance: 0^{[16][note 3]}

Referee: Giorgi Kruashvili (Georgia)

5 September 2021 (2021-09-05)

20:45

Belgium	3–0	Czech Republic
Lukaku   8' E. Hazard   41' Saelemaekers   65'	Report (FIFA) Report (UEFA)

King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels

Attendance: 21,416^[17]

Referee: Michael Oliver (England)

---

8 September 2021 (2021-09-08)

20:45 (21:45 UTC+3)

Belarus	0–1	Belgium
	Report (FIFA) Report (UEFA)	Praet   33'

Central Stadium, Kazan (Russia)^[15]

Attendance: 0^{[18][note 3]}

Referee: Paweł Raczkowski (Poland)

8 September 2021 (2021-09-08)

20:45 (19:45 UTC+1)

Wales	0–0	Estonia
	Report (FIFA) Report (UEFA)

Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff

Attendance: 21,624^[19]

Referee: Ruddy Buquet (France)

---

8 October 2021 (2021-10-08)

20:45

Czech Republic	2–2	Wales
Pešek   38' Ward   49' (o.g.)	Report (FIFA) Report (UEFA)	Ramsey   36' James   69'

Sinobo Stadium, Prague

Attendance: 16,856^[20]

Referee: Deniz Aytekin (Germany)

8 October 2021 (2021-10-08)

20:45 (21:45 UTC+3)

Estonia	2–0	Belarus
Sorga   58' Zenjov   90+3'	Report (FIFA) Report (UEFA)

Lilleküla Stadium, Tallinn

Attendance: 3,597^[21]

Referee: Mohammed Al-Hakim (Sweden)

---

11 October 2021 (2021-10-11)

20:45 (21:45 UTC+3)

Belarus	0–2	Czech Republic
	Report (FIFA) Report (UEFA)	Schick   22' Hložek   65'

Central Stadium, Kazan (Russia)

Attendance: 0^{[22][note 3]}

Referee: François Letexier (France)

11 October 2021 (2021-10-11)

20:45 (21:45 UTC+3)

Estonia	0–1	Wales
	Report (FIFA) Report (UEFA)	Moore   12'

Lilleküla Stadium, Tallinn

Attendance: 5,118^[23]

Referee: Sandro Schärer (Switzerland)

---

13 November 2021 (2021-11-13)

20:45

Belgium	3–1	Estonia
Benteke   11' Carrasco   53' T. Hazard   74'	Report (FIFA) Report (UEFA)	Sorga   70'

King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels

Attendance: 29,865^[24]

Referee: Halil Umut Meler (Turkey)

13 November 2021 (2021-11-13)

20:45 (19:45 UTC±0)

Wales	5–1	Belarus
Ramsey   3', 50' (pen.) N. Williams   20' B. Davies   77' C. Roberts   89'	Report (FIFA) Report (UEFA)	Kontsevoy   87'

Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff

Attendance: 27,152^[25]

Referee: Maurizio Mariani (Italy)

---

16 November 2021 (2021-11-16)

20:45

Czech Republic	2–0	Estonia
Brabec   59' Sýkora   85'	Report (FIFA) Report (UEFA)

Stadion Letná, Prague

Attendance: 10,076^[26]

Referee: Orel Grinfeld (Israel)

16 November 2021 (2021-11-16)

20:45 (19:45 UTC±0)

Wales	1–1	Belgium
Moore   32'	Report (FIFA) Report (UEFA)	De Bruyne   12'

Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff

Attendance: 32,343^[27]

Referee: Artur Soares Dias (Portugal)

Goalscorers

There were 69 goals scored in 20 matches, for an average of 3.45 goals per match.

5 goals

•   Romelu Lukaku

3 goals

•   Vitaly Lisakovich
•   Hans Vanaken
•   Tomáš Souček
•   Henri Anier
•   Erik Sorga
•   Gareth Bale
•   Aaron Ramsey

2 goals

•   Christian Benteke
•   Kevin De Bruyne
•   Thorgan Hazard
•   Dennis Praet
•   Leandro Trossard
•   Antonín Barák
•   Patrik Schick
•   Daniel James
•   Kieffer Moore

1 goal

•   Yury Kendysh
•   Artem Kontsevoy
•   Pavel Savitski
•   Pavel Sedko
•   Michy Batshuayi
•   Yannick Carrasco
•   Jérémy Doku
•   Thomas Foket
•   Eden Hazard
•   Alexis Saelemaekers
•   Axel Witsel
•   Jakub Brabec
•   Adam Hložek
•   Jakub Jankto
•   Jakub Pešek
•   Lukáš Provod
•   Jan Sýkora
•   Mattias Käit
•   Rauno Sappinen
•   Sergei Zenjov
•   Ben Davies
•   Connor Roberts
•   Neco Williams
•   Harry Wilson

1 own goal

•   Danny Ward (against Czech Republic)

Discipline

A player was automatically suspended for the next match for the following offences:^[28]

• Receiving a red card (red card suspensions could be extended for serious offences)
• Receiving two yellow cards in two different matches (yellow card suspensions were carried forward to the play-offs, but not the finals or any other future international matches)

The following suspensions were served during the qualifying matches:

Team	Player	Offence(s)	Suspended for match(es)
Belarus	Artyom Bykov	vs Wales (5 September 2021)   vs Czech Republic (11 October 2021)	vs Wales (13 November 2021)
	Max Ebong	vs Czech Republic (2 September 2021)   vs Belgium (8 September 2021)	vs Estonia (8 October 2021)
Belgium	Romelu Lukaku	vs Estonia (2 September 2021)   vs Czech Republic (5 September 2021)	vs Belarus (8 September 2021)
	Jan Vertonghen	vs Czech Republic (27 March 2021)   vs Czech Republic (5 September 2021)
Czech Republic	Antonín Barák	vs Belgium (5 September 2021)   vs Wales (8 October 2021)	vs Belarus (11 October 2021)
	Patrik Schick	vs Wales (30 March 2021)	vs Belarus (2 September 2021) vs Belgium (5 September 2021)^[29]
Estonia	Henri Anier	vs Belarus (27 March 2021)   vs Belarus (8 October 2021)	vs Wales (11 October 2021)
	Vladislav Kreida	vs Wales (8 September 2021)   vs Belarus (8 October 2021)
	Märten Kuusk	vs Belarus (27 March 2021)   vs Wales (11 October 2021)	vs Belgium (13 November 2021)
	Karl Rudolf Õigus	vs Belarus (27 March 2021)	vs Belgium (2 September 2021)
Wales	Ethan Ampadu	vs Czech Republic (8 October 2021)   vs Belarus (13 November 2021)	vs Belgium (16 November 2021)
	Kieffer Moore	vs Czech Republic (8 October 2021)   vs Estonia (11 October 2021)	vs Belarus (13 November 2021)
	Connor Roberts	vs Czech Republic (30 March 2021)	vs Belarus (5 September 2021)
	Harry Wilson	vs Denmark in UEFA Euro 2020 (26 June 2021)^[30]

Notes

1. CET (UTC+1) for matches until 27 March and from 31 October (matchday 1–2 and 9–10), and CEST (UTC+2) for matches from 28 March to 30 October 2021 (matchday 3–8).
2. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe, the match was played behind closed doors.
3. The match was played behind closed doors.

References

1. "UEFA preliminary competition for the FIFA World Cup 2022: Draw procedures" (PDF). FIFA. 22 October 2020. Retrieved 22 October 2020.
2. "FIFA World Cup Preliminary Competition – Draw Results" (PDF). UEFA. 7 December 2020. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
3. "UEFA preliminary competition format for the FIFA World Cup 2022" (PDF). FIFA. 4 December 2020. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
4. "European Qualifiers for 2022 World Cup: all the fixtures". UEFA. 9 December 2020. Retrieved 12 December 2020.
5. "Fixture List – European Qualifiers 2020–2022: FIFA World Cup Preliminary Competition" (PDF). UEFA. 8 December 2020. Retrieved 8 December 2020.
6. "Fixture List by Group – European Qualifiers 2020–2022: FIFA World Cup Preliminary Competition" (PDF). UEFA. 8 December 2020. Retrieved 8 December 2020.
7. "Belgium vs. Wales" (JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 24 March 2021. Retrieved 1 April 2021.
8. "Estonia vs. Czech Republic" (JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 24 March 2021. Retrieved 1 April 2021.
9. "Belarus vs. Estonia" (JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 27 March 2021. Retrieved 1 April 2021.
10. "Czech Republic vs. Belgium" (JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 27 March 2021. Retrieved 1 April 2021.
11. "Belgium vs. Belarus" (JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 30 March 2021. Retrieved 1 April 2021.
12. "Wales vs. Czech Republic" (JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 30 March 2021. Retrieved 1 April 2021.
13. "Czech Republic vs. Belarus" (JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 2 September 2021. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
14. "Estonia vs. Belgium" (JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 2 September 2021. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
15. "Belarus ordered to play World Cup home qualifiers in Russia". AP News. 31 July 2021. Retrieved 1 August 2021.
16. "Belarus vs. Wales" (JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 5 September 2021. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
17. "Belgium vs. Czech Republic" (JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 5 September 2021. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
18. "Belarus vs. Belgium" (JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 8 September 2021. Retrieved 8 September 2021.
19. "Wales vs. Estonia" (JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 8 September 2021. Retrieved 8 September 2021.
20. "Czech Republic vs. Wales" (JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 8 October 2021. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
21. "Estonia vs. Belarus" (JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 8 October 2021. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
22. "Belarus vs. Czech Republic" (JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 11 October 2021. Retrieved 11 October 2021.
23. "Estonia vs. Wales" (JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 11 October 2021. Retrieved 11 October 2021.
24. "Belgium vs. Estonia" (JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 13 November 2021. Retrieved 13 November 2021.
25. "Wales vs. Belarus" (JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 13 November 2021. Retrieved 13 November 2021.
26. "Czech Republic vs. Estonia" (JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 16 November 2021. Retrieved 16 November 2021.
27. "Wales vs. Belgium" (JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 16 November 2021. Retrieved 16 November 2021.
28. "Regulations FIFA World Cup 2022 Preliminary Competition" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 2020. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
29. (PDF). UEFA.com. 10 August 2021. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 September 2021. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
30. (PDF). UEFA.com. 10 August 2021. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 September 2021. Retrieved 1 September 2021.

External links

• Official FIFA World Cup website
• Qualifiers – Europe, FIFA.com
• European Qualifiers, UEFA.com