Sport

FIFA brings opening match of World Cup in Qatar forward by one day

Published

2 years ago

August 14, 2022

FIFA has officially brought forward the opening match of this year's World Cup by one day to 20 November in a rare change so that hosts Qatar feature in the gala game.

FIFA said in a statement this week that football's top officials universally approved the decision, while Qatar said it would give unspecified help to fans affected by the change.

On the old schedule, Qatar against Ecuador was to be the official inauguration match on 21 November but Senegal against Netherlands would be the first match of the day. England against Iran would have been the second.

Qatar had also been frustrated as it has invested in a huge opening ceremony show.

"Host country Qatar will now play Ecuador on Sunday 20 November as part of a stand-alone event," said FIFA.

"The opening match and ceremony of this year's tournament at Al Bayt Stadium have been brought forward one day following a unanimous decision taken by the bureau of the FIFA Council today (Thursday)."

The bureau is made up of FIFA leader Gianni Infantino and the six heads of the continental confederations.

"The change ensures the continuity of a long-standing tradition of marking the start of the World Cup with an opening ceremony on the occasion of the first match featuring either the hosts or the defending champions," added FIFA.

Under the new plan, the Group A game between Senegal and the Netherlands has been shifted from 13:00 (14:30 Kabul time) on 21 November to a 19:00 start. There is no change to England's opening Group B clash against Iran.

Qatari organizers, who have spent billions of dollars preparing for the event, immediately welcomed FIFA's gesture.

"Opening the first FIFA World Cup to be held in the Middle East and Arab world is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for Qatar," said the organizing committee in a statement.

"The impact of this decision on fans was assessed by FIFA. We will work together to ensure a smooth tournament for the supporters affected by the change," they added without giving details.

Ariana Television Network (ATN) meanwhile announced in July it had secured the exclusive rights to broadcast the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™ in Afghanistan.

According to company officials, the broadcasting schedule will be revised to include the events of November 20.

Ariana Television Network, the Official and Exclusive broadcaster of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™ in Afghanistan, has worked closely with FIFA to bring what is undoubtedly the world’s most prestigious event into as many homes in Afghanistan as possible.

While not much has been revealed about the opening ceremony, the Emir of Qatar Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani is reported to have special plans for the event, with some reports indicating he has a big fireworks display planned.

For the revised match schedule CLICK HERE

Related Topics:#OpeningMatch #WorldCup ArianaNews featured FIFA Qatar

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Published

23 hours ago

December 21, 2024

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The standout performer of the match was Allah Mohammad Ghazanfar, who took a remarkable 5 wickets, while Rashid Khan supported with 3 wickets. Azmatullah Omarzai and Farid Ahmad each claimed 1 wicket.

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Bangla Tigers lift Lanka T10 Super League title

Player of the match and player of the series was Titan’s skipper Dasun Shanaka.

Published

3 days ago

December 19, 2024

Ariana News

Hambantota Bangla Tigers beat favorites Jaffna Titans by 26 runs in Thursday’s Lanka T10 Super League final at the Pallekele Stadium in Kandy.

The Tigers produced a fine all-round performance to beat the Titans, who had won all their matches in the lead up to the final.

Player of the match and player of the series was Titan’s skipper Dasun Shanaka.

Hambantota Bangla Tigers, put into bat first, posted 133 for seven from their allotted 10 overs through some useful contributions from their top order batsmen.

The openers Mohammad Shahzad and Kusal Perera added 35 runs from 2.4 overs before they suffered a middle order collapse and reached 59 for three at the halfway stage of the innings.

However, skipper Dasun Shanaka and Shevon Daniel revived the innings with a fourth-wicket partnership of 44 runs in three overs.

Shanaka made 21 with two sixes and two boundaries while Daniel struck 26 with one six and three boundaries before Kennar Lewis and Dhananjaya Lakshan added the finishing touches.

Chasing 133 runs for victory, Jaffna Titans lost wickets at regular intervals and they eventually finished at 107 for six despite a fighting unbeaten half century from middle order batsman Tom Abell.
Richard Gleeson wrecked the Hambantota Bangla Tigers’ innings with excellent figures of three wickets for 21 while Shanaka captured two wickets for four runs.