The draw for the 2022 World Cup is taking place today, when England will find out who they will face the group stages of the Qatar finals.
Among the favourites for the tournament, Gareth Southgate’s side have been seeded in the top pot of teams, which means they avoid some of the biggest hitters .
29 teams have qualified for the World Cup so far, but three entries will remain placeholders in the draw, due to disruption of the qualification process caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and the Ukraine war.
Here’s everything you need to know about the pots for the Qatar 2022 draw, and which teams England could face.
Which teams are in the World Cup 2022 pots?
Fifa published the latest world rankings on Thursday 31 March, with England retaining fifth place to be confirmed in the top pot of seeds. The rankings are based on results weighted over several years.
That means the Three Lions are seeded alongside Brazil, Belgium, France, Argentina, Spain, Portugal and hosts Qatar, with Holland, Germany and Croatia in pot two.
Wales are ranked 18th in the new table but will be among the lowest seeds in pot four if they make it to Qatar, as would Scotland and Ukraine. The bottom pot also contains the other two other placeholders.
Here are the pots in full for the 2022 World Cup draw:
Pot 1
- Qatar
- Brazil
- Belgium
- France
- Argentina
- England
- Spain
- Portugal
Pot 2
- Mexico
- Netherlands
- Denmark
- Germany
- Uruguay
- Switzerland
- USA
- Croatia
Pot 3
- Senegal
- Iran
- Japan
- Morocco
- Serbia
- Poland
- South Korea
- Tunisia
Pot 4
- Cameroon
- Canada
- Ecuador
- Saudi Arabia
- Ghana
- Costa Rica/New Zealand
- UAE/Australia/Peru
- Wales/Scotland/Ukraine
Each team in pot one will be assigned to Groups B to H, with Qatar automatically going into Group A. They will then be assigned a number in that group to determine the order of the fixtures. Qatar will be designated as A1, and feature in the opening match on November 21.
The match schedule will be confirmed after the draw, to allow for the selection of optimal kick-off times for television and live audiences.
More on Qatar 2022
Who could England draw in their group?
While England will avoid South American heavyweights like Argentina, Brazil and defending champions France who are also in Pot 1, there are still some very difficult opponents they could face.
Among the most difficult teams in Pot 2 are old rivals Germany, 2018 conquerors Croatia and the always strong Netherlands.
African champions Senegal are in Pot 3 alongside the likes of Son Heung-min’s South Korea, Robert Lewandowski’s Poland and Dusan Vlahovic’s Serbia.
A resurgent Canada sit in Pot 4 with African heavyweights Ghana and Cameroon. Scroll down for the full list of teams.
What time is the World Cup 2022 draw?
The draw for World Cup 2022 is taking place on Friday 1 April, starting at 5.00pm UK time. It is being held at the Doha Exhibition & Convention Center.
You can watch the draw live on BBC One from 4.45pm until 6.00pm, when the coverage will switch to BBC Two until 6.30pm.
The broadcast is being hosted by Mark Chapman, with commentary from Jonathan Pearce, and you’ll be able to watch live online via BBC iPlayer here.
In the draw, 32 teams will be drawn into eight groups of four, with countries divided into four pots based on their position in the latest Fifa world rankings.
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