The match schedule for FIFA World Cup 2022 to be held in Qatar was unveiled on Wednesday. The enormous Al Bayt Stadium with a 60,000 capacity arena will be the venue for the tournament on November 21, 2022.
With the relatively short travel distances for the venues in and around Doha, it could be possible for fans who travel to the 32-team tournament to attend multiple games each day.
The local kick-off times for group matches have been set for 13:00, 16:00, 19:00, and 22:00 (11:00 CET), with the simultaneous kick-offs for the last round of group games and knockout-stage timings being 18:00 and 22:00.
The final on Dec. 18 will be held at the 80,000 Lusail Stadium, which, like Al
Bayt will also host a semi-final. Khalifa International Stadium will be the setting for the play-off for third place on December 17.
With the aim of providing all teams with optimal rest between their matches, the group stage will last 12 days and, with four matches per day.
Once the pairings are known, the possibility will be discussed of providing a more beneficial kick-off time for audiences at home, or indeed for fans in Qatar with regard to the stadium allocation.
“The World Cup is always a festival of football, a real celebration for the fans who come on-site and watch. In Qatar, with the compact nature, this is
going to be amplified even more with 32 teams and 32 sets of supporters all
in and around Doha,” said FIFA Chief Tournaments and Events Officer, Colin Smith.
FIFA will wait until the draw for the tournament is held in March or April of 2022 before assigning specific games to venues and time-slots. That will
enable them to better align games with time zones for domestic television
partners of the competing teams.
Nasser Al Khater, CEO of the Qatar World Cup organizing company, said
plans for the tournament were well on schedule with 90% of the work
finished on roads and infrastructure.
“When we talk about the stadiums, more than 85% of the work has been
completed and really now, the last two years, we’re focusing on our
operation readiness and making sure we get the fan experience plans in
place,” he said.
For more details and to book seats for FIFA 2022 visit the official website FIFA.com.
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