We are now less than a month away from the 2022 FIFA World Cup, and all 32 countries are participating. Group stage matchups have been set, so we can start predicting who might be able to advance.
Argentina, Lionel Messi, and Uruguay will go up against Mexico in Group C, and the USA and England will face off in Group B. Luis Suarez and Uruguay will take on the USA in Group H, and the final World Cup tournament for Cristiano Ronaldo looks set to be spoilt.
Taking place from Sunday, Nov. 20 to Sunday, Dec. 18, the tournament will kick off with an opening ceremony and the first match between Qatar and Ecuador.
With five World Cup titles to its name, Brazil enters the tournament as the most successful nation of all time. They have a manageable group to navigate while defending champions France is expected to finish top in their group. Therefore, they have a strong chance of building momentum heading into the knockout rounds.
What teams are likely to surprise you? Senegal, the African champions, is one of the strongest teams in Group A, which includes Qatar as the host. Canada made its first appearance in 37 years, settling in Group F, where it faces Morocco and Croatia for the second spot.
WORLD CUP GROUP BREAKDOWNS: Group A | Group B | Group C | Group D Group E | Group F | Group G | Group H
World Cup 2022 Fixture tournament format
As in previous editions, there will be a 32-team group stage, which will reduce the field to 16 teams – only the top two teams from each group will advance.
Each of these 16 teams will move on to the knockout stages of the tournament — the Round of 16, the quarterfinals, the semifinals, the final — and the loser is eliminated. Every knockout-round match must have a winner on the day, and if necessary, extra time and penalty kicks will be used if,
Group stage:Nov. 20-Dec. 2
Round of 16: Dec. 3-6
Quarterfinals: Dec. 9-10
Semifinals: Dec. 13-14
Third-place match: Dec. 17
Final: Dec. 18
When are the Qatar World Cup matches scheduled to begin?
The group stage will consist of four matches each day, staggered throughout the day, except on the final day of the group stage when two matches overlap purely for competitive integrity.
Below is a breakdown of how the local kickoff times in Qatar translate to various time zones around the globe; the local kickoff time in Qatar coincides with the local time out in Qatar itself.
Table of Contents
World Cup FIFA 2022 kickoff times
Stage(s)
Local (Qatar)
USA & Canada (ET)
UK (GMT)
Australia (AEDT)
India (IST)
Group stage only
1 p.m.
5 a.m.
10 a.m.
9 p.m.
3:30 p.m.
Group stage only
4 p.m.
8 a.m.
1 p.m.
12 a.m.
6:30 p.m.
Knockouts only
6 p.m.
10 a.m.
3 p.m.
2 a.m.
8:30 p.m.
Group stage only
7 p.m.
11 a.m.
4 p.m.
3 a.m.
9:30 p.m.
Group/Knockouts
10 p.m.
2 p.m.
7 p.m.
6 a.m.
12:30 a.m.
MORE WORLD CUP 2022: Full draw results | TV schedule | Latest news
