After several months of waiting, the 2022 FIFA World Cup begins today in Qatar.
FIFA World Cup, Opening Ceremony: The first game of the prestigious football event will be played between the host country Qatar and Ecuador at 9:30 PM tonight.
For the first time ever, the FIFA World Cup will be held in the Middle East. Qatar is hoping it will bring with it a variety of economic advantages that it can share with its Gulf neighbours. Here is all you need to know about the FIFA World Cup 2022 opening ceremony in Qatar on November 20, 2022
Before the football action begins, an opening ceremony will be held at the Al Bayt Stadium to declare the tournament 'open'. It will be a remarkable event as the stadium has a seating capacity of 60,000 people. In total, 32 teams will battle it out for the trophy over the course of about a month. The FIFA World Cup 2022 will take place in Qatar from 20 November to 18 December, where 8 world-class stadiums have been built or completely renovated to host the international football championship.
Famous South Korean singer Jungkook will perform at the opening ceremony among others.
- The opening ceremony of the FIFA World Cup 2022 will take place on Sunday, 20 November.
- The opening ceremony of the FIFA World Cup 2022 will take place at the Al Bayt Stadium.
- The final of the tournament will be played on December 18 at the Lusail Stadium.
- The opening ceremony of the FIFA World Cup 2022 will begin at 7:30 PM IST.
- The opening ceremony of the FIFA World Cup 2022 will be broadcast live on Sports18 and Sports18 HD TV.
Here is all you need to know about the FIFA World Cup 2022 :
FIFA World Cup 2022 tournament format:
The 2022 World Cup will follow the lines of recent editions, with a 32-team group stage fielding 16 teams - only the top two teams from each of the eight groups will survive.
Those 16 group-stage teams will advance to single-game knockout stages – Round of 16, Quarterfinals, Semifinals, Final – where the winner advances and the loser goes home. Every knockout round match must have a winner on that day, and extra time and penalty kicks will be used, if necessary, to determine the winner. Qatar, Ecuador, Senegal, Netherlands
FIFA World Cup 2022 Groups
Group A: Qatar, Ecuador, Senegal, Netherlands
Group B: England, Iran, United States, Wales/Scotland/Ukraine
Group C: Argentina, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Poland
Group D: France, Australia/UAE/Peru, Denmark, Tunisia
Group E: Spain, Costa Rica/New Zealand, Germany, Japan
Group F: Belgium, Canada, Morocco, Croatia
Group G: Brazil, Serbia, Switzerland, Cameroon
Group H: Portugal, Ghana, Uruguay, South Korea
Group A match schedule :
| Date | Match | Time (ET) | Stadium |
| Sun, Nov. 20 | Qatar vs. Ecuador | 11 a.m. | Al Bayt |
| Mon, Nov. 21 | Senegal vs. Netherlands | 11 a.m. | Al Thumama |
| Fri, Nov. 25 | Qatar vs. Senegal | 8 a.m. | Al Thumama |
| Fri, Nov. 25 | Netherlands vs. Ecuador | 11 a.m. | Khalifa Int'l |
| Tues, Nov. 29 | Netherlands vs. Qatar | 10 a.m. | Al Bayt |
| Tues, Nov. 29 | Ecuador vs. Senegal | 10 a.m. | Khalifa Int'l |
Group B match schedule :
| Date | Match | Time (ET) | Stadium |
| Mon, Nov. 21 | England vs. Iran | 8 a.m. | Khalifa Int'l |
| Mon, Nov. 21 | USA vs. Wales | 2 p.m. | Ahmad Bin Ali |
| Fri, Nov. 25 | Wales vs. Iran | 5 a.m. | Ahmad Bin Ali |
| Fri, Nov. 25 | England vs. USA | 2 p.m. | Al Bayt |
| Tues, Nov. 29 | Wales vs. England | 2 p.m. | Ahmad Bin Ali |
| Tues, Nov. 29 | Iran vs. USA | 2 p.m. | Al Thumama |
| Date | Match | Time (ET) | Stadium |
| Tues, Nov. 22 | Argentina vs. S. Arabia | 5 a.m. | Lusail |
| Tues, Nov. 22 | Mexico vs. Poland | 11 a.m. | Stadium 974 |
| Sat, Nov. 26 | Poland vs. S. Arabia | 8 a.m. | Education City |
| Sat, Nov. 26 | Argentina vs. Mexico | 2 p.m. | Lusail |
| Wed, Nov. 30 | Poland vs. Argentina | 2 p.m. | Stadium 974 |
| Wed, Nov. 30 | S. Arabia vs. Mexico | 2 p.m. | Lusail |
| Date | Match | Time (ET) | Stadium |
| Tue, Nov. 22 | Denmark vs. Tunisia | 8 a.m. | Education City |
| Tue, Nov. 22 | France vs. Australia | 2 p.m. | Al Janoub |
| Sat, Nov. 26 | Tunisia vs. Australia | 5 a.m. | Al Janoub |
| Sat, Nov. 26 | France vs. Denmark | 11 a.m. | Stadium 974 |
| Wed, Nov. 30 | Tunisia vs. France | 10 a.m. | Education City |
| Wed, Nov. 30 | Australia vs. Denmark | 10 a.m. | Al Janoub |
| Date | Match | Time (ET) | Stadium |
| Wed, Nov. 23 | Germany vs. Japan | 8 a.m. | Khalifa Int'l |
| Wed, Nov. 23 | Spain vs. Costa Rica | 11 a.m. | Al Thumama |
| Sun, Nov. 27 | Japan vs. Costa Rica | 5 a.m. | Ahmad Bin Ali |
| Sun, Nov. 27 | Spain vs. Germany | 2 p.m. | Al Bayt |
| Thurs, Dec. 1 | Japan vs. Spain | 2 p.m. | Khalifa Int'l |
| Thurs, Dec. 1 | Costa Rica vs. Germany | 2 p.m. | Al Bayt |
| Date | Match | Time (ET) | Stadium |
| Wed, Nov. 23 | Morocco vs. Croatia | 5 a.m. | Al Bayt |
| Wed, Nov. 23 | Belgium vs. Canada | 2 p.m. | Ahmad Bin Ali |
| Sun, Nov. 27 | Belgium vs. Morocco | 8 a.m. | Al Thumama |
| Sun, Nov. 27 | Croatia vs. Canada | 11 a.m. | Khalifa Int'l |
| Thurs, Dec. 1 | Croatia vs. Belgium | 10 a.m. | Ahmad Bin Ali |
| Thurs, Dec. 1 | Canada vs. Morocco | 10 a.m. | Al Thumama |
| Date | Match | Time (ET) | Stadium |
| Thurs, Nov. 24 | Switzerland vs. Cameroon | 5 a.m. | Al Janoub |
| Thurs, Nov. 24 | Brazil vs. Serbia | 2 p.m. | Lusail |
| Mon, Nov. 28 | Cameroon vs. Serbia | 5 a.m. | Al Janoub |
| Mon, Nov. 28 | Brazil vs. Switzerland | 11 a.m. | Stadium 974 |
| Fri, Dec. 2 | Cameroon vs. Brazil | 2 p.m. | Lusail |
| Fri, Dec. 2 | Serbia vs. Switzerland | 2 p.m. | Stadium 974 |
| Date | Match | Time (ET) | Stadium |
| Thurs, Nov. 24 | Uruguay vs. South Korea | 8 a.m. | Education City |
| Thurs, Nov. 24 | Portugal vs. Ghana | 11 a.m. | Stadium 974 |
| Mon, Nov. 28 | South Korea vs. Ghana | 8 a.m. | Education City |
| Mon, Nov. 28 | Portugal vs. Uruguay | 2 p.m. | Lusail |
| Fri, Dec. 2 | South Korea vs. Portugal | 10 a.m. | Education City |
| Fri, Dec. 2 | Ghana vs. Uruguay | 10 a.m. | Al Janoub |
| Date | Match | Time (ET) | Stadium |
| Sat, Dec. 3 | 1A vs. 2B | 10 a.m. | Khalifa Int'l |
| Sat, Dec. 3 | 1C vs. 2D | 2 p.m. | Ahmad Bin Ali |
| Sun, Dec. 4 | 1D vs. 2C | 10 a.m. | Al Thumama |
| Sun, Dec. 4 | 1B vs. 2A | 2 p.m. | Al Bayt |
| Mon, Dec. 5 | 1E vs. 2F | 10 a.m. | Al Janoub |
| Mon, Dec. 5 | 1G vs. 2H | 2 p.m. | Stadium 974 |
| Tues, Dec. 6 | 1F vs. 2E | 10 a.m. | Education City |
| Tues, Dec. 6 | 1H vs. 2G | 2 p.m. | Lusail |
| Date | Match | Time (ET) | Stadium |
| Fri, Dec. 9 | QF1: 1E/2F vs. 1G/2H | 10 a.m. | Education City |
| Fri, Dec. 9 | QF2: 1A/2B vs. 1C/2D | 2 p.m. | Lusail |
| Sat, Dec. 10 | QF3: 1F/2E vs. 1H/2G | 10 a.m. | Al Thumama |
| Sat, Dec. 10 | QF4: 1B/2A vs. 1D/2C | 2 p.m. | Al Bayt |
| Date | Match | Time (ET) | Stadium |
| Tues, Dec. 13 | QF2 vs. QF1 | 2 p.m. | Lusail |
| Wed, Dec. 14 | QF4 vs. QF3 | 2 p.m. | Al Bayt |
| Date | Match | Time (ET) | Stadium |
| Sat, Dec. 17 | Semifinal losers | 10 a.m. | Khalifa Int'l |
| Date | Match | Time (ET) | Stadium |
| Sun, Dec. 18 | Semifinal winners | 10 a.m. | Lusail |