The football World Cup in Qatar is now getting a proper opening game after all. World governing body Fifa confirmed on Thursday evening that the finals will open on November 20th, one day earlier than originally planned, with the match between hosts Qatar and Ecuador. The AFP news agency had already reported on FIFA’s plans on Wednesday. “The opening game and the opening ceremony at the al-Bayt Stadium were brought forward by one day by unanimous decision of the Fifa Council Committee,” the world association said in a statement: “The game between Senegal and the Netherlands on Monday, November 21, was postponed from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. for this reason.” Previous plans had envisaged Qatar and Ecuador playing each other at this point. The first World Cup game would have been the duel between Senegal and the Netherlands on the same day. According to the original schedule, the game between England and Iran would also have been played before the official opening.
Tickets already purchased are still valid, it said. We will “try to solve problems arising from this change on a case-by-case basis”. The player shutdown period will start unchanged on November 14th. Germany will start the tournament against Japan on November 23 (4 p.m.).
