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Football London
Football London
Sport
Oliver King

Why League One and League Two are playing during World Cup but Premier League isn't

With the World Cup kicking off this weekend, fans of clubs in League One and League Two will still be able to obtain their weekly football fix despite the ongoing tournament in Qatar.

The European top leagues are taking a break as footballing stars travel from across the world to the Middle East to compete for the most prestigious prize in football.

In England, Premier League and Championship football will be put on hold, however EFL action from the third and fourth tiers continues during the duration of the tournament.

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England will be hoping to improve on their last showing at the tournament, bowing out at the semi-final stage of the 2018 competition in Russia and losing in the final of Euro 2020 to Italy.

Why League One and Two clubs are still playing

The EFL released a statement confirming that the Championship will be paused during the World Cup group stages, but revealed that League One and League Two fixtures will be unchanged for now.

The statement wrote: "Match round 16 in the Championship, set to take place on Saturday, November 12, will be the final round of fixtures played ahead of the call-up period for the tournament, which begins on Monday, November 14.

"The Championship will resume on December 10, 2022, following the culmination of the World Cup group stages, whilst League One and League Two fixtures will continue as normal."

This is due to the fact that teams in League One and League Two are less likely to be affected by the international tournament, with Championship and Premier League teams more likely to have players playing in Qatar, called up for international duty and absent for their clubs.

However, it was also revealed that individual fixtures in League One and League Two could still be postponed, subject to international call-up criteria being met.

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