Group A in the 2022 World Cup will be intriguing, as hosts Qatar are joined by African champions Senegal, plus the Netherlands and Ecuador.
[ MORE: Full schedule for 2022 World Cup ]
This really is a wide-open group and the host nation (who are huge outsiders) will be thinking they have a chance of reaching the knockout rounds if things go their way and the home fans inspire them.
But there’s no doubting that the Netherlands and Senegal are the favorites to advance as Virgil van Dijk will lead the Dutch as they look to make up for missing the 2018 tournament, while Senegal are led by Sadio Mane as they aim to better their best-ever finish of reaching the quarterfinals in 2002.
[ MORE: Ranking every World Cup team, 32-1 ]
Below is everything you need to know for 2022 World Cup Group A.
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Group A schedule (all kick off times ET)
November, 20: Qatar vs Ecuador – Al Bayt Stadium, Al Khor – 12pm
November, 21: Senegal vs Netherlands – Al Thumama Stadium, Al Khor – 5am
November, 25: Qatar vs Senegal – Al Thumama Stadium, Al Khor – 8am
November, 25: Netherlands vs Ecuador – Khalifa International Stadium, Al Rayyan – 11am
November, 29: Netherlands vs Qatar – Al Bayt Stadium, Al Khor – 10am
November, 29: Ecuador vs Senegal – Khalifa International Stadium, Al Rayyan – 10am
When: November 20-29 2022
Group stage game kick off times: 5am, 8am, 10am, 11am
Location: Qatar
TV channel in English: Fox
TV channel in Spanish: Telemundo, Universo, Peacock
Qatar
Current FIFA world ranking: 49
World Cup titles: 0
World Cup appearances: 0
How they qualified: As hosts
Coach: Felix Sanchez
Key players: Abdelkarim Hassan, Almoez Ali, Hassan Al-Haydos
Senegal
Current FIFA world ranking: 18
World Cup titles: 0
World Cup appearances: 2
How they qualified: Beat Egypt in CAF playoff
Coach: Aliou Cisse
Key players: Sadio Mane, Edouard Mendy, Kalidou Koulibaly
Netherlands
Current FIFA world ranking: 8
World Cup titles: 0
World Cup appearances: 10
How they qualified: Qualified automatically from UEFA (Won Group G)
Coach: Louis van Gaal
Key players: Virgil van Dijk, Memphis Depay, Frenkie de Jong
Ecuador
Current FIFA world ranking: 44
World Cup titles: 0
World Cup appearances: 3
How they qualified: Qualified automatically from CONMEBOL (4th place)
Coach: Gustavo Alfaro
Key players: Enner Valencia, Moises Caicedo, Pervis Estupinan
World Cup 2022 Group A: Qatar, Senegal, Netherlands, Ecuador schedule, fixtures, rankings originally appeared on NBCSports.com