World football's biggest competition, the anticipation for the FIFA World Cup 2022 continues to rise amongst fans today as teams from around the world prepare to go head-to-head once more in a spectacle like no other. Qatar, the host country gears up for the world cup as infrastructural projects continue with full swing.
But now here's a thing, as football fans around the world are excited, FIFA has finally released the match schedule for the world cup last month. So, in case you're getting restless to book your flight to Qatar and can't wait to confirm the match schedule, we've brought the official FIFA World Cup 2022 match schedule released by FIFA.
But before we do that, here's what you need to know about FIFA 2022 before we show you the match schedule.
- The group stage of the FIFA World Cup 2022 would be concluded in 12 days with four matches to be played in a single day.
- The knockout matches in the later stages of the tournament will extend past midnight in Qatar in case extra time is required to settle the contest.
- The kickoff times for the matches will be 00:30 am IST, 3:30 pm IST, 6:30 pm IST, and 9:30 pm IST.
- The final of the tournament, along with the third-place match, will kick off at 8:30 pm IST.
- The semi-finals of the world cup will kick off at 00:30 am IST.
Match Schedule For FIFA World Cup 2022
Here's the full match schedule for FIFA World Cup 2022, as officially revealed by FIFA.
Group Stage
The group stage of the FIFA World Cup 2022 would kick off on 21st November and end on 2nd December. Here's the schedule for the same.
NOVEMBER 21st-
Match 1: A1 vs A2
(Kickoff at Al Bayt Stadium at 3:30 pm IST)
Match 2: B1 vs B2
(Kick off at Al Thumama Stadium at 6:30 pm IST)
Match 3: A3 vs A4
(Kick off at Khalifa International Stadium at 9:30 pm IST)
Match 4: B3 vs B4
(Kick off at Al Rayyan Stadium at 00:30 am IST)
NOVEMBER 22nd-
Match 5: D3 vs D4
(Kick off at Al Janoub Stadium at 3:30 pm IST)
Match 6: D1 vs D2
(Kick off at Education City stadium at 6:30 pm IST)
Match 7: C3 vs C4
(Kick off at Ras Abu Aboud Stadium at 9:30 pm IST)
Match 8: C1 vs C2
(Kick off at Lusail Stadium at 00:30 am IST)
NOVEMBER 23rd-
Match 9: F3 vs F4
(Kick off at Al Rayyan Stadium at 00:30 am IST)
Match 10: F1 vs F2
(Kick off at Al Thumama Stadium at 6:30 pm IST)
Match 11: E3 vs E4
(Kick off at Khalifa International Stadium at 9:30 pm IST)
Match 12: E1 vs E2
(Kick off at Al Bayt Stadium at 3:30 pm IST)
NOVEMBER 24th-
Match 13: H3 vs H4
(Kick off at Al Janoub Stadium at 3:30 pm IST)
Match 14: H1 vs H2
(Kick off at Education City stadium at 6:40 pm IST)
Match 15: G3 vs G4
(Kick off at Ras Abu Aboud Stadium at 9:30 pm IST)
Match 16: G1 vs G2
(Kick off at Lusail Stadium at 00:30 am IST)
NOVEMBER 25th-
Match 17: A4 vs A2
(Kick off at Al Rayyan Stadium at 00:30 am IST)
Match 18: A1 vs A3
(Kick off at Al Thumama Stadium at 6:30 pm IST)
Match 19: B4 vs B2
(Kick off at Khalifa International Stadium at 9:30 pm IST)
Match 20: B1 vs B3
(Kick off at Al Bayt Stadium at 3:30 pm IST)
NOVEMBER 26th-
Match 21: C4 vs C2
(Kick off at Al Janoub Stadium at 3:30 pm IST)
Match 22: C1 vs C3
(Kick off at Education City stadium at 6:30 pm IST)
Match 23: D4 vs D2
(Kick off at Ras Abu Aboud Stadium at 9:30 pm IST)
Match 24: D1 vs D3
(Kick off at Lusail Stadium at 00:30 am IST)
NOVEMBER 27th-
Match 25: E4 vs E2
(Kick off at Al Rayyan Stadium at 00:30 am IST)
Match 26: E1 vs E3
(Kick of at Al Thumama Stadium at 6:30 pm IST)
Match 27: F4 vs F2
(Kick of at Khalifa International Stadium at 9:30 pm IST)
Match 28: F1 vs F3
(Kick off at Al Bayt Stadium at 3:30 pm IST)
NOVEMBER 28th-
Match 29: G4 vs G2
(Kick off at Al Ganoub Stadium at 3:30 pm IST)
Match 30: G1 vs G3
(Kick off at Education City stadium at 6:30 pm IST)
Match 31: H4 vs H2
(Kick off at Ras Abu Aboud Stadium at 9:30 pm IST)
Match 32: H1 vs H3
(Kick off at Lusail Stadium at 00:30 am IST)
NOVEMBER 29th-
Match 33: B2 vs B3
(Kick off at Al Rayyan Stadium at 00:30 am IST)
Match 34: B4 vs B1
(Kick off at Al Thumama Stadium at 6:30 pm IST)
Match 35: A2 vs A3
(Kick off at Khalifa International Stadium at 9:30 pm IST)
Match 36: A4 vs A1
(Kick off at Al Bayt Stadium at 3:30 pm IST)
NOVEMBER 30th-
Match 37: D2 vs D3
(Kick off at Al Janoub Stadium at 3:30 pm)
Match 38: D4 vs D1
(Kick off at Education City stadium at 6:30 pm IST)
Match 39: C2 vs C3
(Kick off at Ras Abu Aboud Stadium at 9:30 pm IST)
Match 40: C4 vs C1
(Kick off at Lusail Stadium at 00:30 am IST)
DECEMBER 1st-
Match 41: F2 vs F3
(Kick off at Al Rayyan Stadium at 00:30 am IST)
Match 42: F4 vs F1
(Kick off at Al Thumama Stadium at 6:30 pm IST)
Match 43: E2 vs E3
(Kick off at Khalifa International Stadium at 9:30 pm IST)
Match 44: E4 vs E1
(Kick off at Al Bayt Stadium at 3:30 pm IST)
DECEMBER 2nd-
Match 45: H2 vs H3
(Kick off at Al Janoub Stadium 3:30 pm IST)
Match 46: H4 vs H1
(Kick off at Education City stadium at 6:30 pm IST)
Match 47: G2 vs G3
(Kick off at Ras Abu Aboud Stadium at 9:30 pm IST)
Match 48: G4 vs G1
(Kick off at Lusail Stadium at 00:30 am IST)
The group matches of the FIFA World Cup 2022 will come to an end at this stage and the competition will move on to the Round-of-16 stage.
Round-of-16
The round-of-16 stage of the FIFA World Cup 2022 will kick off on 3rd December and end on the 6th of December 2022. Here's the schedule for the same.
DECEMBER 3rd-
Match 49: 1A vs 2B
(Kick off at Khalifa International Stadium at 8:30 pm IST)
Match 50: 1C vs 2D
(Kick off at Al Rayyan Stadium at 00:30 am IST)
DECEMBER 4th-
Match 51: 1B vs 2A
(Kick off at Al Bayt Stadium at 00:30 am IST)
Match 52: 1D vs 2C
(Kick off at Al Thumama Stadium at 8:30 pm IST)
DECEMBER 5th-
Match 53: 1E vs 2F
(Kick off at Al Janoub Stadium at 8:30 pm IST)
Match 54: 1G vs 2H
(Kick off at Ras Abu Aboud Stadium at 00:30 am IST)
DECEMBER 6th-
Match 55: 1F vs 2E
(Kick off at Education City stadium at 8:30 pm IST)
Match 56: 1H vs 2G
(Kick off at Lusail Stadium at 00:30 am IST)
The round-of-16 stage of the Doha FIFA World Cup 2022 will come to an end at this point with the competition moving on to the quarter-finals stage.
Quarter-Finals
The quarter-finals stage of the FIFA World Cup will commence on 9th December after a rest of two days post the round of 16 stage and will end on 10th December. Here's the schedule for the same.
DECEMBER 9th-
Match 57: W49 vs W50
(Kick off at Lusail Stadium at 00:30 am IST)
Match 58: W53 vs W54
(Kick off at Education City stadium at 8:30 pm IST)
DECEMBER 10th-
Match 59: W51 vs W52
(Kick off at Al Bayt Stadium at 00:30 am IST)
Match 60: W55 vs W56
(Kick off at Al Thumama Stadium at 8:30 pm IST)
The quarter-finals stage of the FIFA World Cup 2022 will come to an end at this point and the competition will move on to the semi-finals stage after a rest of two days post the quarter-finals.
Semi-Finals:-
The semi-finals stage of the FIFA World Cup 2022 will commence on 13th December after a rest of two days and end on 14th December 2022. Here's a schedule for the same.
DECEMBER 13th-
Match 61: W57 vs W58
(Kick off at Lusail Stadium at 00:30 am IST)
DECEMBER 14th-
Match 62: W59 vs W60
(Kick off at Al Bayt Stadium at 00:30 am IST)
The semi-finals stage of the FIFA 2022 will come to an end at this stage as the competition will move on to the third-place match between the losing team of the semi-finals.
Third-Place Match
The third-place match between the losing semi-finalists will be held on the 17th of December after a rest of two days post the semi-finals. Here's the schedule for the same.
DECEMBER 17th-
Match 63: L61 vs L62
(Kick off at Khalifa International Stadium at 8:30 pm IST)
Finally, on 18th December 2022, the FIFA World Cup 2022 will arrive at its final stage post the third-place match when the winner of the world cup would be decided between the winning finalists.
Final
After an action-packed 63 matches and close finishes, the Doha FIFA World Cup 2022 will arrive at its final stage when the two finalists will go head-to-head for the grand prize on 18th December 2022. Here's the schedule for the same.
DECEMBER 18th-
Match 64: W61 vs W62
(Kick off at Lusail Stadium at 8:30 pm IST)
The FIFA World Cup 2022 would come to an end exactly a week before Christmas as new champions would be crowned on 18th December. The match schedule mentioned above has been officially released by FIFA. However, the dates are only tentative and subject to change.
Suggested Read: A Detailed Guide To The Stadiums In Qatar
Besides, let's have a round-up of some other facts and figures revolving around the upcoming world cup.
- The FIFA World Cup is set to be the most expensive world cup ever with an estimated $200 billion USD being spent on the infrastructural projects ahead of the world cup.
- The matches of the world cup will be held in the fewest stadiums ever with only 8 stadiums being on the venue list.
- The Hamad International Airport and Qatar Airways have joined hands to bring about 1300 flights to Qatar in a day. In fact, as the experts believe, the number may even be higher looking at the location of Qatar which is central in the world.
- The stadiums set for the world cup will be fully air-conditioned for the first time ever considering the day temperatures in the country.
- Qatar's metro network which is about 300 km long with 100 stations is set to ferry around 1 million visitors during the world cup.
- Qatar's most remote stadiums, Al Bayt, and Al Wakrah are only 90 miles apart. Just goes to the show how convenient it would be to travel from my venue to the other during the world cup in Qatar.
Suggested Read: A Take On The Key Talking Points Ahead Of The FIFA World Cup 2022
Football's grandest event, the FIFA World Cup 2022 gets ever and with FIFA having officially released the match schedule, fans can't wait to book their seats for this amazing spectacle. However, the dates in the schedule mentioned above are only tentative and may change in case a requirement arises. Hence, keep a closer look and prepare for the biggest footballing carnival on earth.
FAQs
The next FIFA World Cup will be held in the year 2022 in Qatar for the first time ever.
The 2022 FIFA World Cup has already been moved from its usual summer slot to November-December considering the summer heat in Qatar and in the whole of the Northern Hemisphere.
Qatar pitched its hosting of the FIFA World Cup as the representing the Arab world and drew immense support from the neighboring Arab members of the league, eventually winning the bid to host the world cup.
Qatar is well on course to complete its infrastructural projects ahead of time before the world cup begins. In fact, the country has already confirmed the completion of one of its stadiums for the world cup which is the Education City stadium.
Qatar will have seven new stadiums along with one fully refurbished stadium for the world cup.
