The 2022 World Cup in Qatar now feels whole lot closer after the excitement of Friday’s draw in Doha.
England were handed a relatively favourable group for the tournament, with the Three Lions drawn against the United States, Iran and one of either Wales, Scotland or Ukraine.
The full schedule for the tournament, which begins on November 21, has now released by FIFA and has thrown up a number of intriguing fixtures in the opening round of games.
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In a break from tradition, host nation Qatar won’t feature in the opening match, with Senegal taking on the Netherlands in the curtain raiser at the Al Thumama Stadium.
England will also play on the opening day of the tournament for the first time since 1966, taking on Iran at the Khalifa International Stadium.
Qatar will then face Ecuador at the Al Bayt Stadium in the third match of the day, with kick-off scheduled for 7pm local time (4pm GMT) to ensure it is in a primetime spot for the hosts.
Fans can look forward to some mouth-watering matchups in the group stage of the tournament, including Spain vs Germany, Portugal vs Uruguay and Argentina vs Mexico.
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Check out the full match schedule below:
Group stage (local times):
November 21st: Senegal vs Netherlands (13:00), England vs Iran (16:00), Qatar vs Ecuador (19:00) & USA vs European play-off (22:00)
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November 22nd: Argentina vs Saudi Arabia (13:00), Denmark vs Tunisia (16:00), Mexico vs Poland (19:00) & France vs Intercontinental play-off one (22:00)
November 23rd: Morocco vs Croatia (13:00), Germany vs Japan (16:00), Spain vs Intercontinental play-off two (19:00) & Belgium vs Canada (22:00)
November 24th: Switzerland vs Cameroon (13:00), Uruguay vs South Korea (16:00), Portugal vs Ghana (19:00) & Brazil vs Serbia (22:00)
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November 25th: European play-off vs Iran (13:00), Qatar vs Senegal (16:00), Netherlands vs Ecuador (19:00) & England vs USA (22:00)
November 26th: Tunisia vs Intercontinental play-off one (13:00), Poland vs Saudi Arabia (16:00), France vs Denmark (19:00) & Argentina vs Mexico (22:00)
November 27th: Japan vs Intercontinental play-off two (13:00), Belgium vs Morocco (16:00), Croatia vs Canada (19:00) & Spain vs Germany (22:00)
November 28th: Cameroon vs Serbia (13:00), South Korea vs Ghana (16:00), Brazil vs Switzerland (19:00) & Portugal vs Uruguay (22:00)
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November 29th: Netherlands vs Qatar (18:00), Ecuador vs Senegal (18:00), England vs European play-off (22:00) & USA vs Iran (22:00)
November 30th: Denmark vs Intercontinental play-off one (18:00), Tunisia vs France (18:00), Saudi Arabia vs Mexico (22:00) & Poland vs Argentina (22:00)
December 1st: Canada vs Morocco (18:00), Belgium vs Croatia (18:00), Japan vs Spain (22:00) & Germany vs Intercontinental play-off two (22:00)
December 2nd: Ghana vs Uruguay (18:00), Portugal vs South Korea (18:00), Cameroon vs Brazil (22:00) & Serbia vs Switzerland (22:00)
Round of 16:
December 3rd: Group A winner vs Group B runner-up (18:00) & Group C winner Group D runner-up (22:00)
December 4th: Group B runner-up vs Group A winner (18:00) & Group D winner vs Group C runner-up (22:00)
December 5th: Group E winner vs Group F runner-up (18:00) & Group G winner vs Group H runner-up (22:00)
December 6th: Group F winner vs Group E runner-up (18:00) & Group H winner vs Group G runner-up (22:00)
Quarter-finals:
December 9th: Quarter-final one (18:00) & Quarter-final two (22:00)
December 10th: Quarter-final three (18:00) & Quarter-final four (22:00)
Semi-finals:
December 13th: Semi-final one (22:00)
December 14th: Semi-final two (22:00)
Final:
December 18th: World Cup final (18:00)
Who do you think will win the World Cup in Qatar? Let us know your thoughts.
Topics: Football World Cup, Football, Qatar, England, Scotland, Wales
Rory O'Callaghan