Soccer

World Cup 2022 draw: England could face Scotland or Wales

Former champions Spain and Germany to meet in the group stage

Former German international Lothar Matthaeus with the ticket of Germany during the main draw for the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Doha. Photogrpah: Noushad Thekkayil/EPA

Fri Apr 1 2022 - 17:11

England could face Scotland, Wales or Ukraine in Group B of the 2022 World Cup should one of those teams qualify from their European playoffs. The 1966 winners have been drawn alongside Iran, USA and the winners of the final European playoff spot.

Former winners Spain and Germany will meet in Group E alongside the winners of a playoff between Costa Rica and New Zealand, and Japan.

Hosts Qatar will meet Ecuador, Senegal and Netherlands.

The full draw:

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Group A: Qatar Ecuador Senegal Netherlands

Group B: England Iran USA Scotland/Wales/Ukraine

Group C: Argentina Saudi Arabia Mexico Poland

Group D: France Winners of playoff between UAE/Australia/Peru Denmark Tunisia

Group E: Spain Winners of playoff between Costa Rica/New Zealand Germany Japan

Group F: Belgium Canada Morocco Croatia

Group G: Brazil Serbia Switzerland Cameroon

Group H: Portugal Ghana Uruguay Korea Republic

The football world gathered in the Qatari capital on Friday in expectant anticipation of the draw for the World Cup finals.

National team coaches, World Cup-winning players, Qatari dignitaries and football officials from across the globe discovered the group stage match-ups during a ceremony presented by British actor Idris Elba and broadcaster Reshmin Chowdhury.

The tournament will run from November 21st to December 18th – the first time soccer’s top prize has been competed for in the Middle East.

Fans gathered outside the Doha Exhibition and Conference Centre hoping for a glimpse of some of the big names in attendance, which included former champions such as Germany's Lothar Matthaus, Italian Alessandro Del Piero and Brazilian Cafu.

Hundreds of reporters and broadcast crews from all over the world set up camp inside and around the venue as dusk approached and the searing daytime temperatures eased.

The 29 teams who have secured their place in the finals were drawn into eight groups of four teams with three “place holders” for the spots yet to be determined via qualifying games. – Additional reporting from Reuters

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