News Desk
DOHA: After the glittering opening ceremony, FIFA World Cup’s first march will be played in the Al Bayt Stadium in Al Khor between the national teams of the host Qatar and Ecuador. The Al Bayt football stadium has a seating capacity for around 60,000 persons.
Sixty-four matches will be played in eight different brand-new stadiums in Qatar from November 20 to December 18.
An estimated 1.2 million fans from across the globe have set foot in the host country to watch international tournament matches physically.
The World Cup’s final will be played on December 18, when the host country will also celebrate “national day”.
The FIFA World Cup is the championship of men’s football teams of member states. As football evolved, seven countries, Belgium, Denmark, France, Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland, established FIFA to promote friendly relations among the nations and to regulate the international sport.
Qatar is the first Middle Eastern country to host the 22nd FIFA World Cup.
Japan and South Korea were the first to jointly host the World Cup in Asia in 2002.
According to World Cup organisers, at least 2.89 million tickets have already been sold so far. Fans from the United States, Saudi Arabia, England, Mexico, the United Arab Emirates, Argentina, France, Brazil and Germany were among the top purchasers of tickets, followed by the host country.
Groups of Teams in FIFA World Cup
The top two teams from eight groups of the 32 teams will qualify for the knockouts (where 16 teams will play to qualify for the quarter-final).
A complex FIFA procedure is used to determine the groups. The host country and the seven best teams are divided into groups using a ranking system. FIFA has established six qualifying regions: Africa, Asia, Europe, North and Central America, the Caribbean, Oceania, and South America to ensure a diverse geographic representation.
Groups of teams participating in FIFA World Cup
Group A
- Ecuador
- Qatar
- Netherlands
- Senegal
Group B
- USA
- Iran
- England
- Wales
Group C
- Mexico
- Poland
- Argentina
- Saudi Arabia
Group D
- France
- Tunisia
- Australia
- Denmark
Group E
- Spain
- Germany
- Costa Rica
- Japan
Group F
- Belgium
- Croatia
- Canada
- Morocco
Group G
- Brazil
- Switzerland
- Cameroon
- Serbia
Group H
- Portugal
- Ghana
- South Korea
- Uruguay
Accommodation for World Cup teams
FIFA planned to reside three-quarters of the FIFA national teams in Qatar this year. The teams will be based within a 10 km (six miles) radius of each complex.
Each team will remain in the same rest house or a hotel and use the same training facility during the event, unlike in past competitions.
FIFA World Cup’s Chief Operating Officer Colin Smith said in a statement that players would have more time to warm up and rest during the competition while experiencing the excitement as fellow players and fans from all 32 nations will be gathering in a single area.”
FIFA stated that the accommodation and residential facilities range “from four and five-star hotels to villas, resorts and non-hotel accommodation, including sports academy residences and school/university housing”.
The knockout rounds consist of 16 teams followed by quarter-finals, semifinals and the final on December 18.
Four matches will be played every day throughout the group stages.
Khalifa Stadium serves as the only pre-existing stadium in Qatar to host games while the other seven stadiums have been built especially for the competition.
