FIFA World Cup 2022 schedule: Dates, times and all you need you know

Qatar will host the biggest football show on the planet, where global stars like Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe, Paul Pogba, Neymar Jr, and Harry Kane are ready to light it up at the FIFA World Cup 2022.

The FIFA World Cup trophy is up for grabs, four years after France claimed the right to call themselves world champions.

The stakes are as high as ever with established footballing nations like Brazil, Belgium, Argentina, England, Germany, Portugal, Senegal, South Korea, and many more aiming for glory and a new page of football history.

So when and where is it? What are the fixture dates? Who qualified for the football World Cup? Where can you find a schedule? Who are the biggest stars to watch?

Read on for the answers to all the big questions on Qatar 2022.

When is the FIFA men's world cup 2022?

The FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar starts on Sunday, November 20, and runs through to Sunday, December 18.

It's the first men's FIFA World Cup not taking place in the northern hemisphere summer, and is being held at the end of Autumn and start of Winter in the Persian Gulf region.

Where will the football World Cup 2022 be held?

The football World Cup in 2022 will be held in eight different stadiums across the middle-eastern nation of Qatar: Lusail Iconic Stadium, Al Bayt Stadium, Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium, Khalifa International Stadium, Stadium 974, Al Thumama Stadium, Education City Stadium, Al Wakrah Sports Complex.

The furthest distance between any two FIFA World Cup 2022 stadiums is around 70 kilometres, or 45 miles, meaning that it's one of the most densely packed tournaments ever.

The Arab state of Qatar has a population of around 3 million people, with over 80% of them living in the nation's capital Doha.

FIFA World Cup qualifiers: Which teams qualified for Qatar 2022?

The 32 countries qualified for the 2022 FIFA World Cup are Qatar (Hosts), Argentina, Brazil, England, France, Spain, Belgium, Portugal, Germany, The Netherlands, Uruguay, Croatia, Denmark, Mexico, the United States, Senegal, Wales, Poland, Australia, Japan, Morocco, Switzerland, Ghana, Korea Republic, Cameroon, Serbia, Canada, Costa Rica, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia, Islamic Republic of Iran, Ecuador.

FIFA World Cup 2022 draw: Groups

The teams have been drawn into eight groups for the first phase of the tournament. There are four teams in each group and the countries will play the other teams in their group once. Winners are awarded with 3 points, there's 1 point to each team if there match ends level, and losers get no points. At the end of the group stage, the top two teams with most points in each group qualify for the knock-out rounds, beginning with the round of 16.

Check out the eight groups of four below.

What time is the first match of the FIFA World Cup 2022?

Hosts Qatar will open the tournament with a Group A match against Ecuador on Sunday 20th November at 19:00 local time (16:00 GMT/UTC) in Doha at Al Bayt Stadium.

How do I get tickets to the FIFA World Cup 2022?

Fans can get tickets through the Fifa.com website. Around 2.5 million tickets have been sold already for Qatar 2022.

Tickets are in the 'last minute phase' of sale. Organisers have restricted entry to Qatar to only allow fans with official tickets to enter the country during the tournament period.

What times will the FIFA World Cup 2022 matches be played?

The first two rounds of group stage games will start at 1:00 PM, 4:00 PM, 7:00 PM and 10:00 PM Arabia Standard Time (AST) which is three hours ahead of GMT/UTC. That's:

• 11:00 AM, 2:00 PM, 5:00 PM, and 8:00 PM CET (the time in central Europe during the tournament)
• 10:00 AM, 1:00 PM, 4:00 PM, and 7:00 PM GMT/UTC (Also the time in the UK during the tournament)
• 5:00 AM, 8:00 AM, 11:00 AM and 2:00 PM Eastern Standard Time (EST or ET) in the USA
• 2:00 AM, 5:00 AM, 8:00 AM and 11:00 AM Pacific Standard Time (PST or PT) on the west coast of the US and Canada

The last round of group games and the knockout matches will take place at 6.00 PM and 10.00 PM local time:

• 4:00 PM and 8:00 PM CET
• 3:00 PM and 7:00 PM UTC / UK
• 10:00 AM and 2:00 PM ET
• 7:00 AM and 11:00 AM PT

The final, on December 18, is at 6:00 PM local time. That’s 4:00 PM in central Europe, 3:00 PM UTC and in the UK, 10:00 AM Eastern time and 7:00 AM Pacific Time in the US.

Who are the stars to watch at the Qatar 2022 World Cup?

The biggest names in the men's game will descend on Qatar for the sport's showpiece international event.

Two candidates for footballing G.O.A.T., Leo Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, will be there for probably their final attempt at winning the big one.

Ronaldo is now 37 and Messi 35, and both have admitted that this is their last dance.

But Olympic champ Messi and Ronaldo will be joined by an all-star cast that includes France's Kylian Mbappe, Paul Pogba, and Antoine Griezmann - the reigning champs from 2018.

Then there's Olympic gold medallist Neymar and Brazil who have been in devastating form with a side stacked with superstars like Gabriel Jesus who fired Arsenal top of the Premier League, Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo emerging as global superstars at Real Madrid, and Olympic champion Richarlison aiming to become world champion too. And that's just in attack.

The Selecao Canarinho also boast Thiago Silva and the iconic Olympic champion Dani Alves at the back, along with defensive midfield maestros Casemiro and Fabinho.

Even in goal, Brazil have an impossible choice between Liverpool's Alisson and Manchester City's Ederson.

Then there's England with captain Harry Kane who will believe they have a strong shout after making the final of Euro 2020 and only losing out on penalties to Italy.

English stars like Phil Foden, Raheem Sterling, Jude Bellingham, Reece James, Bukayo Saka, Jack Grealish, Mason Mount, Marcus Rashford, have England fans dreaming of a first World Cup since 1966.

Outside some of the big favourites there's Uruguay's Luis Suarez, South Korea's Son Heung-Min, Belgian duo Kevin De Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku, Japanese wonderkid Kubo Takefusa, Alphonso Davies (Canada), USA soccer hope Christian Pulisic ...

The list could go on and on.

FIFA World Cup 2022 schedule: All fixtures, and live start times

All times are local.

Sunday, November 20

• Group A: Qatar vs Ecuador - 7:00 PM

Monday, November 21

• Group B: England vs Iran - 4:00 PM

• Group A: Senegal vs Netherlands - 7:00 PM

• Group B: United States vs Wales - 10:00 PM

Tuesday, November 22

• Group C: Argentina vs Saudi Arabia - 1:00 PM

• Group D: Denmark vs Tunisia - 4:00 PM

• Group C: Mexico vs Poland - 7:00 PM

• Group D: France vs Australia - 10:00 PM

Wednesday, November 23

• Group F: Morocco vs Croatia - 1:00 PM

• Group E: Germany vs Japan - 4:00 PM

• Group E: Spain vs Costa Rica - 7:00 PM

• Group F: Belgium vs Canada - 10:00 PM

Thursday, November 24

• Group G: Switzerland vs Cameroon - 1:00 PM

• Group H: Uruguay vs South Korea - 4:00 PM

• Group H: Portugal vs Ghana - 7:00 PM

• Group G: Brazil vs Serbia - 10:00 PM

Friday, November 25

• Group B: Wales vs IR Iran - 1:00 PM

• Group A: Qatar vs Senegal - 4:00 PM

• Group A: Netherlands vs Ecuador - 7:00 PM

• Group B: England vs United States - 10:00 PM

Saturday, November 26

• Group D: Tunisia vs Australia - 1:00 PM

• Group C: Poland vs Saudi Arabia - 4:00 PM

• Group D: France vs Denmark - 7:00 PM

• Group C: Argentina vs Mexico - 10:00 PM

Sunday, November 27

• Group E: Japan vs Costa Rica - 1:00 PM

• Group F: Belgium vs Morocco - 4:00 PM

• Group F: Croatia vs Canada - 7:00 PM

• Group E: Spain vs Germany - 10:00 PM

Monday, November 28

• Group G: Cameroon vs Serbia - 1:00 PM

• Group H: South Korea vs Ghana - 4:00 PM

• Group G: Brazil vs Switzerland - 7:00 PM

• Group H: Portugal vs Uruguay - 10:00 PM

Tuesday, November 29

• Group A: Netherlands vs Qatar - 6:00 PM

• Group A: Ecuador vs Senegal - 6:00 PM

• Group B: Wales vs England - 10:00 PM

• Group B: IR Iran vs United States - 10:00 PM

Wednesday, November 30

• Group D: Tunisia vs France - 6:00 PM

• Group D: Australia vs Denmark - 6:00 PM

• Group C: Poland vs Argentina - 10:00 PM

• Group C: Saudi Arabia vs Mexico - 10:00 PM

Thursday, December 1

• Group F: Croatia vs Belgium - 6:00 PM

• Group F: Canada vs Morocco - 6:00 PM

• Group E: Japan vs Spain - 10:00 PM

• Group E: Costa Rica vs Germany - 10:00 PM

Friday, December 2

• Group H: South Korea vs Portugal - 6:00 PM

• Group H: Ghana vs Uruguay - 6:00 PM

• Group G: Cameroon vs Brazil - 10:00 PM

• Group G: Serbia vs Switzerland - 10:00 PM

FIFA World Cup 2022 knockout stages schedule

• December 3-6: Round of 16
• December 9-10: Quarter-finals
• December 13-14: Semi-finals
• December 17: Third-Place Match
• December 18: FIFA World Cup 2022 Final

The 'rest days' when there are no games during Qatar 2022 are Wednesday December 7, Thursday December 8, Sunday December 11, Monday December 12, Thursday December 15, and Friday December 16.

What is the official World Cup 2022 song?

Going big, there's an entire playlist for the Qatar World Cup.

The global hit Hayya Hayya (Better Together) by Trinidad Cardona, Davido, and Aisha was followed by Arhbo, a song by Puerto Rican multiplatinum award-winning superstar Ozuna and French-Congolese rapper Gims - is the first French-speaking artist to produce and perform a World Cup soundtrack

That upbeat new single joined the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Official Soundtrack, and arguably the biggest artist on the album - Grammy award-winning American rapper Lil Baby - released 'The World is yours to take'.

He joined a long list of iconic artists like Vangelis, Ennio Morricone, Plácido Domingo, and Shakira in recording a song for the World Cup.

"When I started in music in 2017, I went all in on a dream that brought me to where I am now," Lil Baby, real name Dominique Armani Jones, said.

"And that’s what I want fans to feel when they hear the song,"

"I hope it makes you feel like you're walking out onto the pitch at the World Cup, making moves toward your own dreams, whatever that means to you," he added.

"I'm by far one of the hardest workers, real firm believer in practice makes perfect," the song opens.

Qatar 2022 official mascot: La'eeb

La’eeb is the Official Mascot for the FIFA World Cup 2022.

"La’eeb is an Arabic word meaning super-skilled player. He belongs to a parallel mascot-verse that is indescribable – everyone is invited to interpret what it looks like," according to the FIFA website.

"La’eeb encourages everyone to believe in themselves as ‘Now is All’. He will bring the joy of football to everyone. The adventurous, fun, and curious La’eeb was unveiled during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™ Final Draw."

What is the trophy for the FIFA World Cup 2022?

The coveted gold trophy up for grabs in Qatar is simply called the FIFA World Cup. It has been used since 1974. Prior to that, the Jules Rimet Trophy was used from 1930 to 1970.

Where to watch the FIFA World Cup live on TV and live streaming?

Here's a list of the TV broadcasters who organisers FIFA are partnering with and where you can watch the 2022 World Cup tournament games across the globe.

• Afghanistan: ATN
• Albania: RTSH
• Argentina: TVP - TyC Sports
• Armenia: AMPTV
• Australia: SBS
• Austria: ORF - ServusTV
• Azerbaijan: İTV
• Bangladesh: T Sports
• Belarus: Belteleradio
• Belgium: RTBFVRT
• Bolivia: Bolivia TV - Red Uno - Unitel
• Bosnia and Herzegovina: BHRT
• Bulgaria: BNT - Nova
• Brazil: TV Globo
• Brunei: Kristal-Astro
• Cambodia: TVK
• Canada: Bell Media
• Caribbean: SportsMax
• Cayman Islands: Logic
• Central Asia: Saran Media
• China: CCTV - Migu
• Colombia: Caracol Televisión - RCN Televisión
• Costa Rica: Teletica
• Croatia: HRT
• Curaçao: TV Direct 13
• Cyprus: CyBC
• Czech Republic: ČTTV Nova
• Denmark: DRTV 2
• Ecuador: Teleamazonas
• El Salvador: TCS
• Estonia: ERR
• Europe: EBU
• France: TF1 - beIN Sports
• Finland: Yle - MTV3
• Georgia: GPB
• Germany: ARD - ZDF - Deutsche Telekom
• Greece: ANT1
• Guatemala: TV Azteca - Tigo Sports
• Honduras: Televicentro
• Hong Kong: PCCW
• Hungary: MTVA
• Iceland: RÚV
• Indian subcontinent: Viacom18
• Indonesia: Klikdaily - Emtek
• Ireland: RTÉ
• Israel: IPBC
• Italy: RAI
• Japan: Dentsu - Abema
• Kazakhstan: Kazakh TV
• Kosovo: RTK
• Latin America: Vrio Corp.
• Latvia: LTV
• Liechtenstein: SRG SSR
• Lithuania: LRT
• Macau: TDM
• Malaysia: Astro - RTM
• Malta: PBS
• MENA: beIN Sports
• Mexico: TelevisaTV Azteca
• Moldova: TRM
• Mongolia: Central Television
• Montenegro: RTCG
• Nepal: Media Hub
• Netherlands: NOS
• New Zealand: Sky
• North Macedonia: MRT
• Norway: NRKTV 2
• Pakistan: ARY Digital Network
• Panama: RPC - TVN
• Paraguay: SNT - Telefuturo - TreceTyC - SportsTigo Sports
• Peru: Latina Televisión
• Philippines: TAP DMV
• Poland: TVP
• Portugal: RTP Sport TV
• Romania: TVR
• Russia: Match TV - Channel One - VGTRK
• Senegal: RTS
• Serbia: RTS
• Slovakia: RTVS
• Slovenia: RTV
• South Africa: SABC
• South Korea: SBS - KBS - MBC
• Spain: RTVE - Mediapro
• Sub-Saharan Africa: SuperSport - New World TV
• Suriname: SCCN - STVS
• Sweden: SVT TV4
• Switzerland: SRG SSR
• Taiwan: ELTA
• Trinidad and Tobago: CNC3
• Turkey: TRT
• Ukraine: Suspilne
• United Kingdom: BBC ITV
• United States: Fox - Telemundo
• Uruguay: ANTEL - Canal 4 - Canal 10 - TeledoceTyC Sports
• Uzbekistan: MTRK
• Venezuela: Televen