The Qatar World Cup 2022 starts in November, with kick-off times scheduled four times a day during the group stages
(Image credit: Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images)
Kick-off times at the Qatar World Cup 2022 are scheduled four times during the day during the group stages, with European audiences prioritised.
The 2022 edition of the World Cup has a number of firsts – not least that it's the first edition of the competition to have been hosted in the Middle East. Because of this, the tournament is obviously taking place in the winter to avoid the baking hot summer that Qatar endures during the usual World Cup months of June and July, though there are other ways in which this will become a unique tournament.
Given the small size of Qatar, there are only eight stadia hosting fixtures at the tournament – and due to this, plus the disruption of the domestic season – matches are going to be packed into a tight schedule between November and December…
What will the kick-off times be at the Qatar World Cup 2022?
All kick-off times for the World Cup 2022 will be between 10am and 7pm in the UK.
The first two rounds of group games will have kick-off times of 10am, 1pm, 4pm and 7pm GMT. The final group stage games and all knockout games will have kick-offs of 3pm and 7pm.
From there, knockout round matches will be at 3pm and 7pm UK time.
(Image credit: Getty)
When will Qatar 2022 World Cup games kick off local time?
Here's what all the kick-off times look like depending on your time zone.
10am GMT
Qatar: 1pm
CET: 11am
EST: 5am
PDT: 2am
1pm GMT
Qatar: 4pm
CET: 2pm
EST: 8am
PDT: 5am
3pm GMT
Qatar: 6pm
CET: 4pm
EST: 10am
PDT: 7am
4pm GMT
Qatar: 7pm
CET: 5pm
EST: 11am
PDT: 8am
7pm GMT
Qatar: 10pm
CET: 8pm
EST: 2pm
PDT: 11am
How many hours ahead is Qatar?
Qatar is three hours ahead of Greenwich Mean Time.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
When will the 2022 World Cup kick off?
The 2022 World Cup kicks off in Qatar on November 20 at 7pm local time (4pm UK time), when the hosts take on Ecuador in the first game of the competition.
How long will the World Cup games be?
Despite rumours that the 2022 World Cup could be the first to feature 100-minute matches – 10 minutes longer than a regular football game – FIFA have been quick to quash speculation.
"Following some reports and rumours spread today, FIFA would like to clarify that there will be no changes to the rules regarding the length of football matches for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 or any other competition," a statement read on April 6 2022.
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Mark White has been at on FourFourTwo since joining in January 2020, first as a staff writer before becoming content editor in 2023. An encyclopedia of football shirts and boots knowledge – both past and present – Mark has also represented FFT at both FA Cup and League Cup finals (though didn't receive a winners' medal on either occasion) and has written pieces for the mag ranging on subjects from Bobby Robson's season at Barcelona to Robinho's career. He has written cover features for the mag on Mikel Arteta and Martin Odegaard, and is assisted by his cat, Rosie, who has interned for the brand since lockdown.
