August 12, (THEWILL) – In order to allow hosts Qatar to play Ecuador in the opening game of the 2022 World Cup, FIFA has confirmed that the tournament would begin one day earlier than initially scheduled.
On Monday, November 21, Qatar was supposed to begin their first World Cup campaign, with Group A rivals Senegal and the Netherlands scheduled to kick off the play earlier that day as the first game of the global football competition.
With the change, Felix Sanchez’s Qatar team will now start the tournament on Sunday, November 20, at 7 p.m. local time, keeping with the custom of the home team playing first, thanks to a unanimous decision by the FIFA Council Bureau. This means that the opening ceremony has been moved up one day to November 20.
A FIFA statement on the change read: “The FIFA World Cup 2022 will kick off with an even greater celebration for local and international fans as host country Qatar will now play Ecuador on Sunday, 20 November as part of a stand-alone event,” read a statement issued by FIFA.
“The change ensures the continuity of a long-standing tradition of marking the start of the FIFA World Cup with an opening ceremony on the occasion of the first match featuring either the hosts or the defending champions. The decision followed an assessment of the competition and operational implications, as well as a thorough consultation process and an agreement with key stakeholders and the host country.”
Since the 2006 World Cup in Germany, when Jurgen Klinsmann’s squad defeated Costa Rica 4-2, the World Cup hosts have participated in the first game of the competition. Due to this decision, the Netherlands’ match against Senegal will now take place after England’s Group B opening against Iran on November 21 at a later time.
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Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
