Qatar vs Ecuador: Was this the worst opening game at a World Cup?

08:09 PM

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Thin gruel for home fans as Ecuador outclass Qatar

By Thom Gibbs

An hour into the opening game of World Cup 2022 a persistent clapping broke out in block 143 at the Al Bayt Stadium.

It started with a line of seven men all wearing the traditional white thobe and before long the five rows in front joined in, perhaps 40 people in total. It never expanded from there but continued for at least 10 minutes. It gradually became clear that the fans were clapping along with the seconds on the clock. Is this what passes for fun when the only beer available is Bud Zero?

Was this the worst opening match at a World Cup finals? It was certainly a contender and the match stats were damning:  The 11 shots in the game (five for Qatar, six for Ecuador) were the fewest of any World Cup game since records began in 1966.

The optimistic pre-tournament talk had cast Qatar’s Masia-reared manager Felix Sanchez as the man who would deliver competitive tiki taka to the hosts. As this game approached some of that hopefulness crystalised into expectation. Qatar are Asian champions, the referees would surely be in their favour, hosts always over-perform. Not on this evidence.

Predictably the match did not sound like a European game. There was misguided applause for an agricultural clearing of lines and a big cheer for a block from Abdelkarim Hassan as Gonzalo Plata looked to breeze past. Behind the goal a whole block of Qatari quasi-ultras dressed mostly in their team’s maroon were having a well-coordinated disco. That block had been empty during the opening ceremony, mischievously you might wonder if its dancers had traded leotards for football shirts at its conclusion and were now being paid overtime.

More traditional expressions of football fandom were on show if you looked around the concourses. You would have to be extremely hardhearted not to respond to the faces of children wearing that unique football-attending mix of emotions: thrilled and slightly frightened. This is the soppy stuff at the heart of Gianni Infantino’s misguided ideas about the power of the sport.

But any hopes of the hosts going on a fairytale run were tempered early. Qataris rose dazed after tackles, looking like they had just taken their first shot to the chin after moving up a weight class. Their great hope up front Akram Afif was dropping ridiculously deep to get on the ball and his team were two goals down after 31 minutes, both beautifully taken by Enner Valencia.

Certain tournament truisms remain indestructible, one is you won’t go far without a solid keeper. Saad Al-Sheeb does not look like that guy. He gave away a penalty and flapped horribly in the build-up to what seemed like the opening goal, but it was overturned via var, Michael Estrada offside by a tiny margin. “Estrada needs to do something about his toenails, because it was very tight,” said his manager Gustavo Alfaro.

And so the tedium unfolded. One dreadful shot from Hassan might actually have ended up 26 rows back, i.e. row z. The ‘ultras’ were game but had little to rhythmically clap, aside from Almoez Ali nearly connecting with a header towards the end of the first half.

Half time gave a chance to come again. “Let’s make some noise”, screeched the enthusiastic stadium announcer. Little was forthcoming. “Come on, you can do better than that,” he pleaded. There was no appreciable difference to the manufacture of noise. Tough crowd.

The people here did not look like those riding the newly-built Metro, with far more in the thobe than anywhere else across the city. Perhaps there was a sense of disbelief that their team, who they know are capable of more, were making such heavy work of a match they have spent 12 years preparing for. Captain Hasan Al-Haydos tried to get them going in the tunnel, but looked like a reluctant team leader on an Apprentice task going south.

After the break Ecuador expertly killed off the game as living entity. Generously, the Qatari fans were slow back to their seats. As the half wore on it became clear that many would not be returning. Even the ultras had significantly thinned in number.

'This team can perform better'

Qatar manager Felix Sanchez claimed he had been too busy to notice. “Truth be told I had enough work during the game,” he said. “We felt backed and supported by our fans. We hope for the next game people will be able to feel prouder. They know this team can perform better and they will support us until the end. We are sorry because we couldn’t contribute to this great atmosphere, to this party.”

It became a match played out before empty seats in the apathetic stillness of the desert. The eager announcer returned to trumpet an attendance of 67,372. No more than half were left by then, even fewer saw Qatar’s best attempt, sub Mohammed Muntari lashing just over.

At the final whistle Qatar full-back Homam Ahmed was stationed on the touchline. He put his hands on his thighs and knelt over the Adidas Al Rihla ball, peering at it for 30 seconds. All this wait, all this preparation, and this is how he felt after the first night. Coming back to himself, he walked back towards his team-mates. He left the ball behind.

The message from Infantino and other key stakeholders in this dubious tournament has been clear: Concentrate on the football. After this Qatar fans will be asking: do we have to?

07:53 PM

Muted enthusiasm

07:48 PM

Pressure

07:46 PM

For Ecuador

That was a very satisfactory run out. I guess only two negatives: one, hopefully Enner Valencia is okay having gone off with a knee knack.

The second would be that you'd assume Netherlands and Senegal will beat Qatar - and could well absolutely pump them - so Ecuador might miss out on goal difference down the line. 2-0 would be the minimum really.

07:45 PM

Did Qatar have their moments?

Not really. One nicely hit volley from the edge of the box. A decent headed chance right at the end of the first half, although I reckon that might have been offside had it come to it.

07:14 PM

Here's how they lined up

07:14 PM

Stats

07:13 PM

Some of your views from the comments below

"FIFA can shove their tournament where the sun doesn't shine."

"I reckon Qatar will win the World Cup at half time"

"Qatar to win the whole thing. They are invincible. Even scoring goals against them can’t beat them"

06:14 PM

Challenge laid down

06:10 PM

Just 11 shots today

That's the fewest at a World Cup game since 1966 apparently. While we are on a stats tip, Qatar are the first hosts to lose their World Cup opener....

06:09 PM

Lineker

"We love a bit of a roll up here. Not that kind of roll up. Here's Afif rolling around on the floor. What's that three, four? Perhaps he'll get the Roll-den Boot..."

06:08 PM

Nonplussed Ultras

06:04 PM

How do you think the players did?

Have your say with our player ratings tool.

06:01 PM

Full time: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

Pretty comfortable.

Alan Shearer: "Won in the first half. Very flat the second half."

Lineker: "Yes, poor. A lot of empty seats in the second half."

A forgettable World Cup opener in all honesty. We will have reaction and so on for half an hour on this blog but perhaps I'm not alone in already thinking ahead to tastier treats to come, such as England tomorrow.

On the subject of the BBC, here is Jeremy Wilson.

The BBC have come under fire for not showing the World Cup opening ceremony live on BBC One after their coverage from Qatar began with presenter Gary Lineker raising human rights issues.

The ceremony at the Al Bayt stadium had already started when the BBC, who were screening the opening match between hosts Qatar and Ecuador, began their live coverage at 3pm. They did not then immediately switch to the stadium and only began focussing their coverage on the live footage from Qatar shortly before kick-off.

Mehrdad Ghodoussi, a partner at PCP Capital Partners and one of the main faces at Newcastle United following the Saudi Arabian takeover, went on Twitter to say that it was “a shame” that BBC One did not broadcast the event live.

Others on social media were rather more direct, describing the non-coverage as “disrespectful”, “embarrassing” and “disgraceful”.

The opening ceremony was shown live on the BBC iPlayer and the ITV Hub, who were not themselves screening the Qatar v Ecuador game.

The BBC had been showing live coverage of the Women’s Super League immediately before the Qatar game and it is understood that the decision was not linked to the controversy over Qatar hosting the event.

A source said that they had also chosen to show other recent tournament opening ceremonies only on the iPlayer and that the decision was in line with their coverage of recent major football events.

A BBC statement said: “Full build up and coverage of the World Cup has been available across the BBC, including the opening ceremony on iPlayer.”

Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani had arrived at the stadium flanked by Fifa president Gianni Infantino.

Saudi Arabia's crown prince and the presidents of Egypt, Turkey and Algeria, as well as the United Nations Secretary-General, were among other leaders in the tent-shaped stadium ahead of the first match between the hosts and Ecuador.

The ceremony itself featured camels, Hollywood actor Morgan Freeman and a performance of the new tournament song, 'Dreamers', featuring singer Jungkook of K-pop boy band BTS, alongside Qatari singer Fahad Al-Kubaisi.

06:00 PM

90 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

The last action of the match is a corner for Qatar that is headed clear and that is all she wrote.

05:59 PM

89 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

Ecuador will make it seven clean sheets in a row assuming this stays the same. Hard to know what to read into this particular performance obviously given the quality of the oppo, but you can only bear what it is front of etc etc etc.

05:55 PM

TTFN

05:52 PM

86 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

Nearly a splendid moment as Muntari times his run through and smashes a shot first time. Dipping, well struck, it lands on the roof of the net with the keeper beaten. "A GOAL FOR ALL OF THE ARAB WORLD" commentary moment: denied. The crowd oooo in agony.

05:50 PM

85 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

Ecuador with another chance to put this to bed. Sarmiento slides it through but it is just overhit and it evades the runner.

05:49 PM

84 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

None of the previous 13 World Cup debutants have won their first go at a World Cup match, the BBC's Steve Bower says of Qatar. You have to go back to Senegal for that - Qatar's next oppo, funnily enough.

05:48 PM

Just now

Here is Valencia coming off.

05:45 PM

View from the cheap (ish) seats

From Tom Morgan in a spectator seat at Al Bayt Stadium

It's the startling breeze pumping out through the air conditioning vents and directly into your backside that brings it home: this is football but not as we know it.

As you take your seat at the Al Bayt Stadium, everything is different. Qataris, mostly men in traditional white roles, take in the scenes as though they are attending the theatre. There were loud shrieks every time the Qataris managed a rare forray forward and the roof came off when VAR cancelled Ecuador's earlier opener.

The vast majority of noise inside the stadium is led by a well-drilled army of 1,500 red shirted spectators - Qatari's answer to Ultras - dancing and singing in unison behind the home goal in the first half.

Heading inside at half-ime to pick up refreshments is an entirely novel affair too, apart from the long, snaking queues. Gone is the scent of beer. No sticky floors. Just patient locals, quietly standing in line, to pick up popcorn, coca-cola, and, in rare cases, non-alcoholic Bud.

Hot food had run out, service was painfully slow, but even as the second half resumed, nobody complained.

To top off this very surreal experience, everyone goes home with a party bag - filled with a little ornament and, most puzzling of all, a small bottle of perfumed lotion.

05:44 PM

79 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

Sarmiento has blazed over after a break and nobody is more relieved than he to see the lino raise the offside flag.

05:42 PM

78 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

Afif - identified by Gary Lineker in his intro as "an anagram of Fifa", and indeed I might add furthermore a palindrome - has done a nasty foul onto the instep of Plata.

05:41 PM

76 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

Afif has a dibble but that's not troubling the scorers.

05:41 PM

75 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

This is a sorry sight: Valencia is limping off the field. Hope that knee is not giving him too much bother. A few who've plunged on him for the Golden Boot will be keeping their fingers crossed.

05:40 PM

72 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

Mohammed Muntari and Mohammed Waad on for Hassan Al Haydos.

Almoez Ali may yet become his country's record goalscorer, but it won't be tonight.

Al Haydos is the skipper, and he is giving the armband to calamity keeper Al Sheeb.

05:37 PM

70 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

05:35 PM

68 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

Good news for Brighton fans

Jeremy Sarmiento replaces Romario Ibarra for Ecuador.

He joins fellow Seagulls Moises Caicedo and Pervis Estupinan.

05:30 PM

66 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

Interesting that the TV has chosen to focus on some Qatar fans singing and cheering passionately, which is at odds with the story those inside the ground are telling.....

05:29 PM

65 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

Surprised that the Qatar coach hasn't changed personnel yet.

05:27 PM

62 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

Ecuador's Angelo Preciado is down injured.

This game entirely drifting, barely anything to tell you about in this last ten minutes or so. Fans leaving. Home side nowhere near the opponent in quality. Ecuador dominant but not thrillingly so.

05:24 PM

56 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

Painful foul there by Ecuador's Jhegson Mendez on Akram Afif. Booked.

05:20 PM

55 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

Ibarra now has a good chance to wrap this up. Receives the ball, switches it, shoots. Saved by the Qatar keeper. Perhaps that will settle him.

Thom Gibbs reports: "Really striking that 10 minutes into the second half the stadium appears about 25 per cent empty. Looked pretty packed at kick-off. Can assume some have lingered by the bar for rather too long during half-time, who can blame them enjoying their delicious Bud Zeros? But maybe some of the home fans have seen enough?"

05:19 PM

52 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

An excellent raking cross unluckily bisects the forward pair of Estrada and Valencia, both of whom were well placed to sweep that in and put this match to bed.

05:14 PM

47 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

Pervis Estupinan nearly gets through and it's all hands to the pump once again for the Qatar defence.

David Beckham there.

05:13 PM

46 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

Any way back for the hosts? Hard to see but here we go.

05:10 PM

How do you think the players have done?

05:08 PM

Talking of knees

Enner Valencia is okay to play in the second half. He knacked himself just before half time.

05:08 PM

England say

they will take the knee against Iran.

05:03 PM

The strange Var disallowed opener - explained

Confusion as opening 'goal' of World Cup ruled out for offside

04:57 PM

Thom Gibbs's half time take

"Qatar coming into it a tiny bit as that half wore on, but instructive that their main man Afif, nominally a centre-forward, is dropping back into his own half at times to get involved. The only time he has received the ball with a bit of space to run into he was swiftly blocked by Mendez.

Been impressed with Ecuador, Plata looks lively on their right wing, Caicedo linking things in the middle, two beautifully taken goals from Valencia. I know it's folly to look too far forward in a tournament but on this evidence I’d rather England avoided them in the round of 16. We’d have to see them against better opposition than this first, though."

04:55 PM

Half time: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

Alan Shearer: "men against boys."

Alex Scott: "Qatar cannot handle the physicality and the transitions. Yes they have been together since June but the physicality is too much. In transitions, they are so out of shape, Ecuador have just hit them through the middle."

Gary Lineker: "Var found a way [to disallow the goal]."

Shearer: "There could not be one person in the world that thought it was offside."

We will have a full explanation as the disallowed first goal in a minute.

04:53 PM

45+ mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

And here we are! Qatar get down the right, cross comes in and there's Almoez Ali Abdulla free in the area and all he needs to do is to nod this home. Gets it all wrong.

04:52 PM

45+ mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

They're not doing a great deal with this spell of possession but it's a start.

04:49 PM

45 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

We are going to have five minutes added on. Qatar having a decent spell.

04:48 PM

42 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

Enner Valencia has hurt his knee by hyper-extending it. Ouch. They bring on a stretcher but he's up and hobbling and seems keen to carry on, and of course why would he not be? He has every chance of chalking up the 53rd hat-trick at the WC.

04:42 PM

Explanation for the disallowed goal

04:39 PM

36 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

Snide foul from Boudiaf on Valencia, justly deserving of the yellow that he received.

04:38 PM

Here's the poor old Qatar manager

wonder if he is thinking something along the lines of the below.....

04:37 PM

33 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 2

Carvalho Deus Correia up with an aerial challenge that sees him clatter Estrada hard in the head.

04:34 PM

GOAL! Qatar 0 Ecuador 2 (Valencia 32)

It's two for Enner Valencia! Header into the corner. The goal was really made by the cross in from the right, Preciado the man who delivered it. Lovely whipped arcing cross and Valencia does the rest.

04:33 PM

Thom Gibbs reports

A real sense that Ecuador are the nasty bigger boys, and they have come to ruin Qatar's night. A couple of crunching early tackles had Qatar players wincing, like they'd just taken their first straight right on the jaw after moving up a weight class.

We were promised a Middle Eastern take on tiki-taka in some of the pre-World Cup guides. That seems optimistic at the moment, some of the biggest cheers from a subdued home support have been for agricultural clearances. Boudiaf, trying his best in central midfield, is trying to gee up his team-mates.

A small but CRITICAL detail that you may not have picked up on on TV, the tops of the dugouts are LED screens. I am looking straight down at Qatar to me left, Ecuador to my right, both have subtly rippling flags. Wonderful. Deeply unnecessary, but wonderful.

04:32 PM

28 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 1

Moises Caicedo becomes the first Ecuador player in the book, maybe a bit unluckily.

04:31 PM

Great shot of the foul for the pen

04:29 PM

25 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 1

Qatar cannot get out of their own half. Ecuador having it all their own way. Boudiaf is gesturing in frustration at some teammates.

04:28 PM

24 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 1

04:27 PM

22 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 1

Striker Almoez Ali goes into the book, he has fouled Enner Valencia.

04:23 PM

18 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 1

This lad in goal for Qatar, Al Sheeb, is having a mare. Ecuador get down the left, cross from Ecuador's Pervis Estupinan, the keeper's misjudged it and lucky for him that Estrada is just a couple of inches too short to head this home. He and the Qatar custodian collide. Sore one for both.

04:19 PM

GOAL! Qatar 0 Ecuador 1 (Enner Valencia 16 pen)

Nicely taken pen, walks up slowly and gives the keeper the eyes, tucks it away in the corner as the Qatari keeper goes the wrong way.

04:18 PM

15 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 0

In any event, the dodgy Qatar keeper has brought down an Ecuador forward who was going round him and about to tuck it away. Tap-tackled him on the ankle and gave away the penalty and gets the yellow.

Up steps Enner Valencia for the spot kick.....

04:17 PM

14 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 0

Dion Dublin: "They'll always find a way, Var, won't they?"

So yes, about 10 minutes or more after that goal was ruled out, we seem to have an explanation for why: the Ecuador player was offside by a foot. Well, a knee.

04:13 PM

10 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 0

Ecudaor well on top and they're pressing hard for the opener. They've had a freekick that was quite well defended and now have a corner.

Qatar keeper looks like an accident waiting to happen.

04:12 PM

Still not really clear

why that was not allowed.

04:05 PM

3 mins: CONTROVERSY!

Oh no! The hosts have conceded early, and it is a howler. Pervis Estupinan is taking the freekick as Ecuador look to stick it in the mixer, the Qatar keeper has come out waving at his mother, made a complete mess of it and flapped at the ball not once but twice. An Ecuador player  Felix Torres looks to bicycle it back in, it's panic stations in there and eventually the ball is headed in by Ener Valencia. The Ecuador lads going wild. They have scored after 3 minutes.

But what's this....!

Var is in the building.

They are checking.

Checking again.

And the referee has disallowed it! Oh dear. Why? It's not immediately clear. We look forward to understanding how the ref managed to overturn that.

Updated: chapter and verse on how and why this was ruled out. 

Confusion as opening goal of World Cup ruled out for offside

04:04 PM

2 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 0

Couple of big tackles coming in. One of them gives Ecuador a freekick.

04:04 PM

1 mins: Qatar 0 Ecuador 0

Dion Dublin on the BBC: "Lets enjoy the football and hopefully we get some goals." Qatar the side aiming to do that right away with a busy, thrusting start.

04:02 PM

The teams are ready

Qatar are in red, they kick off. Ecuador kick off. Oop. They have bungled the 10-9-8-7- etc countdown in the stadium.

04:02 PM

Almoez Ali

has scored 41 goals for Qatar, if he scores one more, that will be the national record.

04:01 PM

Here is our player ratings tool

Rate and slate away, folks.

03:59 PM

Qatar anthem is a belter

by the way. Good atmos.

03:57 PM

Qatar plod getting involved

03:56 PM

Qatar fans up for it

03:55 PM

Anthem time

Ecuador get to go first.

03:54 PM

Here's Lineker's

opener from just now on the BBC.

03:53 PM

Infantino

"Bienvenidos a su casa".

"Welcome to celebrate football, because football unites the world."

03:53 PM

Warm up

03:51 PM

BBC 1 viewers

have not seen the opening ceremony. That was on the BBC website, but the BBC TV coverage has focused on punditry with Lineker et al.

03:46 PM

Branding

03:45 PM

Propaganda

03:44 PM

Akram Afif is one to watch for

the hosts, he can take up free roles, a creative player.

03:43 PM

Players getting ready

03:43 PM

Qatar keeper

takes up the theme. "We are not Germany or Brazil but this is a chance to showcase our talent."

They certainly coming into the tournament in good form.

03:41 PM

BBC

has found some Qatari football journalists and a woman footballer to express the view that this is a chance for the country to showcase itself via the universal language of football.

03:39 PM

QR teams

03:38 PM

The stadium capacity

is 60,000 - this is also the venue in which England will play the USA on Friday.

03:31 PM

Ecuador players are warming up

03:29 PM

Football Supporters Association

spokesman notes to Pien Meulensteen how busy is will get given how close all the stadia are together.

Here is a bit more on the grounds.

Qatar World Cup 2022 stadiums: Your guide to the eight venues

03:27 PM

Team analysis

Hosts Qatar's top scorer Almoez Ali and fellow striker Akram Afif lead the line against Ecuador in Sunday's World Cup opener as coach Felix Sanchez sticks with stalwarts from a settled squad that has had longer than most to bond and prepare.

Experienced midfielder Hasan Al-Haydos, who can also play on the wing, takes the captaincy for the World Cup debutants and 2019 Asian Cup winners at the 60,000-capacity Al Bayt stadium.

Ecuador coach Gustavo Alfaro also names a predictable lineup, with Moises Caicedo anchoring the midfield and top scorer Enner Valencia leading the attack as captain.

The South Americans were, however, without defender Byron Castillo, left at home to avoid further controversy after the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled him eligible but sanctioned Ecuador for giving false information in nationality paperwork.

Qatar: Al-Sheeb, Al-Rawi, Khoukhi, Abdelkarim Hassan, Deus Correia, Boudiaf, Hatem, Ahmed, Al-Haydos, Ali, Afif. Subs: Waad, Salman, Alaaeldin, Asad, Muntari, Khoder, Mohammad, Muneer, Al-Hajri, Yousef Hassan, Barsham, Madibo, Al-Hadhrami, Gaber, Mashaal.

Ecuador: Galindez, Angelo Preciado, Torres, Hincapie, Estupinan, Plata, Mendez, Caicedo, Ibarra, Valencia, Estrada. Subs: Arboleda, Cifuentes, Pacho, Gruezo, Ayrton Preciado, Ramirez, Arreaga, Mena, Sarmiento, Palacios, Franco, Dominguez, Reasco, Porozo, Rodriguez.

03:25 PM

Turning to the actual football...

Qatar: Al-Sheeb, Al-Rawi, Khoukhi, Abdelkarim Hassan, Deus Correia, Boudiaf, Hatem, Ahmed, Al-Haydos, Ali, Afif. Subs: Waad, Salman, Alaaeldin, Asad, Muntari, Khoder, Mohammad, Muneer, Al-Hajri, Yousef Hassan, Barsham, Madibo, Al-Hadhrami, Gaber, Mashaal.

Ecuador: Galindez, Angelo Preciado, Torres, Hincapie, Estupinan, Plata, Mendez, Caicedo, Ibarra, Valencia, Estrada. Subs: Arboleda, Cifuentes, Pacho, Gruezo, Ayrton Preciado, Ramirez, Arreaga, Mena, Sarmiento, Palacios, Franco, Dominguez, Reasco, Porozo, Rodriguez.

03:24 PM

Jeremy Bowen

of the BBC explaining about Qatar's history and nation-building.

03:22 PM

Alan Shearer

"Infantino says we should stick to football. HE should stick to football not come out with that rubbish yesterday"

They should give compensation to migrant workers and families, says Wor Sir Al.

03:21 PM

Alex Scott

"A whole heap of fans from LGBTQ+ communities are not travelling here. On Infantino, you are not gay. You will never understand what it is like to travel to somewhere out of fear. I have conversations about whether I should have stayed at home. Sitting here and having the harder conversations and that is why I am here. Four years ago I was the first female BBC pundit at a World Cup."

03:17 PM

Pricey

03:17 PM

BBC is replaying Infantino's

astonishing speech, as we have reported. "Today I feel gay. Today I feel a woman. Today I feel a migrant worker. As a child I was bullied because I had red hair."

Alex Scott: "completely bizarre. You are not a migrant worker. You will never know what it is like. Families lost their loved ones just trying to earn some money. Absurd."

Ashley Williams doing the this-is-a-chance-to-shine-a-light bit.

03:16 PM

Williams

"It only becomes sportswashing when we don't talk about it."

03:14 PM

This is not your average WC opener

Shearer: "Every country has its problems including our own."

03:10 PM

BBC's Ros Atkins

gives the rundown of the whole Qatar affair from the bidding process to the plight of the migrant workers.

Carbon footprint too. Lancaster University reckons that this WC will produce five times more carbon than Russia 2018.

03:08 PM

Ghosts in the machine

03:06 PM

Ashley Williams

"I am expecting teams to be fit and not too much fatigue because they will not have had a long full season."

03:06 PM

Alex Scott

"International managers already don't get a lot of time with their teams so they will have to hit the ground running."

03:05 PM

Alan Shearer

"Weird having a winter World Cup but hopefully once the football get underway."

03:02 PM

Here comes the World Cup on the BBC

Gary Lineker opens the coverage with a sombre, no-nonsense rundown of the problems that have bedeviled this tournament before a ball has even been kicked. Migrant workers, gay, women, Fifa corruption, all get a mention.

"Stick to football, say Fifa. Well, we will. For a couple of minutes at least" - Gary Lineker.

Punch opening from Gary, already dividing fans online.

02:59 PM

Wow

Opening ceremony is not disappointing. Some very swishy chaps in red lace up smocks with leather detailing and red shorts are doing a dance routine. Woof.

02:56 PM

Morgan Freeman is our host

The opening ceremony is well underway. We've had drumming, children being the future, fireworks. Now some football shirts and flags.

02:51 PM

The opening ceremony is underway

You can follow it on our blog with Andy Quinn.

02:43 PM

Thom Gibbs reports from the Al Bayt stadium

Good evening from the top tier of a blessedly breezy Al Bayt stadium. Some air conditioning may be helping, but it's tough to see where it's coming from, there's a rug-like cover above my head where you would usually see steel and rickety metal sheets in a British stadium.

Not a hint of it here, but rather a lot of exposed wiring and haphazard ramps in the press seats. Have a very generous screen up here, so we can see the aerial shots. It clearly looks fantastic from up there, it is all a touch more chaotic in reality. Traffic getting here was predictably heavy. Some mild concerns about a delayed kick-off but I would be amazed, an event like this has no margin for error.

Looks pretty full for an hour and a half before kick off but goodness me it's quiet when the music drops below ASBO volume. Like day four of a Lord's Test that is heading for a dreary draw. Biggest cheer so far for Marcel Dessailly bringing out the World Cup trophy, although as much prominence was given to the fact he was transporting it in a Louis Vuitton case, so perhaps that was what they were cheering for?

02:42 PM

Who's your favourite referee?

And will he or she be at the Fifa World Cup 2022? Let's find out!

Your guide to the referees at the World Cup in Qatar

02:35 PM

Ecuador squad

Ecuador World Cup 2022 squad list, fixtures and latest odds

02:34 PM

Qatar squad

Qatar World Cup 2022 squad list, fixtures and latest odds

02:21 PM

Have your say!

We would love to hear your thoughts on the World Cup. Should they be having it in Qatar? Who will win? How do you like the chances of England or Wales? The opening ceremony? This game? Anything you like. Please put your comments at the bottom of this blog.

02:19 PM

So what's the deal with airline peanuts?

I personally have been intrigued by what the experience is actually going to be like for fans in Qatar. This splendidly informative piece from Tom Morgan and Sam Wallace gives some excellent background.

Qatar World Cup rules: Alcohol restrictions, plus weather, food and tickets explained.

02:07 PM

Qatar fan

02:02 PM

Kits

The question on the lips of many as we count down to the opening match is: "who has got the best World Cup kit?" Reader, allow m'colleague Thom Gibbs to mark your card.

It's good news for fans of Japan. Ghana aficionados: look away now.

World Cup kits 2022: Every shirt ranked – including Puma horrors and an Argentina classic

01:56 PM

Sweepstake

There's still probably just about enough time to get a sweepstake up and running should you have access to a printer and 31 pals.

01:44 PM

Match predictor

Who do you think will win this opening match? Will it be Qatar, who are ranked 50th in the world, or will it be the South American side, Ecuador, who are ranked 44? You can put your score in below and win the admiration of your friends for getting it right.

01:34 PM

World Cup opening match

Hello and welcome to our live blog of the opening match of the 2022 World Cup. It will be contested by Qatar, who are the hosts, and their Group A rivals Ecuador. The match will kick off at 4pm and there will be an opening ceremony beforehand. The coverage in the UK will be on the BBC and is hosted by Gary Lineker.

There has been a lot of debate about whether Qatar should have got the World Cup, the means and methods by which they secured the nomination, and the health and safety of the workers brought in from other countries to build the stadia in a country where there was not a lot of football infrastructure. Lots of people have criticised these things, and also the human rights issues in the country, where they are harsh on gay people. Many high profile people in and out of football have had their say about it but one notes that quite a few of these people have not boycotted the Qatar World Cup. What do you think? Please have your say in the comments below.

As to the match itself both of these sides will have earmarked this as the one they have to win in group A. The other two teams in the group are Netherlands and Senegal, both of whom are fancied ahead of this pair. Félix Sánchez is the Qatar coach and he has had a lot more time to prep his players, all of whom play in the Qatar domestic league, than some rivals so what his team lack in raw talent might be offset by preparation and cohesion. They will also of course be used the conditions, which could certainly be a factor mitigating against success for teams that are more used to a mild climate.