World Cup to begin on Sunday November 20 with Qatar to face Ecuador in opening match as FIFA decide to bring forward start date of tournament

The World Cup will begin a day sooner than scheduled with Qatar to tackle Ecuador on Sunday November 20.

The Group A opener was because of be performed on November 21 at 4pm GMT, making it the third match of the competitors.

Senegal vs Netherlands was presupposed to be the opening match, with the Al Thumama Stadium conflict to kick off at 10am on the Monday. The match will now begin at 4pm.

However following discussions with Qatar and Ecuador, world governing physique FIFA signed off on a proposal to maneuver the host nation’s opener.

“The opening match and ceremony of this 12 months’s match at Al Bayt Stadium have been introduced ahead someday following a unanimous resolution taken by the Bureau of the FIFA Council immediately,” stated an announcement from soccer’s world governing physique.

“The change ensures the continuity of a long-standing custom of marking the beginning of the FIFA World Cup with a gap ceremony on the event of the primary match that includes both the hosts or the defending champions.

“The choice adopted an evaluation of the competitors and operational implications, in addition to an intensive session course of and an settlement with key stakeholders and the host nation.”

Qatar vs Ecuador will happen after a gap ceremony on the sector on the 60,000-capacity Al Bayt Stadium. The match is scheduled to kick off at 5pm GMT.

The ruling matches in with custom of both the hosts or the holders being concerned within the opening match.

It means the match will now stretch to 29 days quite than 28 however the remainder of the scheduling of the matches is not going to be affected.

England start their marketing campaign in opposition to Iran on November 21 at 1pm, whereas Wales tackle the USA at 7pm on the identical date.

FIFA has stated the the discharge interval for gamers on the 2022 World Cup stays unchanged, starting on November 14.

The FIFA assertion added: “Ticket holders will likely be duly notified by e-mail that the related matches have been rescheduled and their tickets will stay legitimate no matter the brand new date/time.

“As well as, FIFA will search to handle any points arising from this variation in a case-by-case foundation.

“The FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 match schedule, in addition to the competitors rules, have been amended accordingly.”