Qatar vs Ecuador live stream, match preview, team news and kick-off time for the World Cup 2022

Looking for a Qatar vs Ecuador live stream? We've got you covered. Qatar vs Ecuador is free on BBC iPlayer in the UK. Brit abroad? Use a VPN to watch World Cup 2022 free (opens in new tab) from anywhere.

This is it: it's here. The opening match of the 2022 World Cup and the first ever match at the tournament to be staged in the Middle East, almost 12 years on from the Gulf State being awarded the tournament in controversial circumstances.

Qatar have made big investments into football since, upgrading the infrastructure in the country and developing a national team worthy of doing itself justice on the biggest stage. This is undoubtedly the biggest match in a nation's history and it could genuinely go either way.

Ecuador, meanwhile, are armed with three Brighton players and led by former West Ham man Enner Valencia (remember him?). They're most definitely the least talked about side in their group – but maybe that'll work in their favour.

Kick-off is at 4pm GMT. Make sure you know how to watch World Cup 2022 wherever you are.

Both teams come into this one without too many injury issues. For the hosts, Abdullah Al-Ahrak is the biggest miss – but he hasn't been called up to Qatar's squad.

For Ecuador, Ayrton Preciado and Robert Arboleda have both been nursing knocks in the run-up to this one. Neither are guaranteed starters in the Ecuador squad but both should be fine to start regardless.

Qatar qualified for this one as hosts and are on a five-match winning run following a tour of Marbella (which sounds like fun). In fact, the Maroon have had some intriguing friendlies in 2022, playing against the likes of Croatia under-23s, Fiorentina and Linfield. They'll be fancying their chances in front of a home crowd.

Ecuador, meanwhile, qualified fourth in the CONMEBOL table to nab the last automatic spot. La Tri have only won twice this year, however, beating Nigeria and Cape Verde in friendlies – so form hasn't been great of late.

The two teams have faced each other three times but never competitively. Their last meeting resulted in a 4-3 win for Qatar.

Clement Turpin of France will be the referee for Qatar vs Ecuador. You can find out more about the World Cup 2022 referees here.

Qatar vs Ecuador will be played at the 60,000-seater Al Bayt Stadium in Al Khor. Take a look at all of the World Cup 2022 stadiums and see how it ranks.

Akram Afif and Almoez Ali are Qatar's two danger men up front. Head coach Felix Sanchez operates with a 3-5-2 in order to pack out the defence and get the most from his forwards, so the Maroon will be hoping one of their strikers can hit the ground running.

Ecuador, meanwhile, will be looking to midfielder Moises Caicedo as their star man. The Brighton star has been superb for the Seagulls this season and if anything is going to happen for them at this tournament, they're going to need him to be at his best.

Read more about the full Qatar and Ecuador squads with our World Cup 2022 squad guides.

Qatar vs Ecuador kick-off is at 4pm GMT on Sunday November 20 in the UK. The game is free to watch on BBC One and iPlayer.

In the US, kick-off time is 11am ET / 8am PT. The match will be shown on FOX/FS1 in the US. See below for international broadcast options.

If you’re out of the country for the World Cup 2022, then you won't be able to watch on your domestic streaming service as usual. The broadcaster knows where you are because of your IP address (boo!) and blocks you from watching it. You can use a VPN to get around that, though, without resorting to illegal feeds you’ve found on Reddit.

A Virtual Private Network (VPN), assuming it complies with your broadcaster’s T&Cs, creates a private connection between your device and t'internet, meaning the service can’t work out where you are and will let you watch. And all the info going between is entirely encrypted, anonymous and safe – and that's a result.

There are plenty of good-value options out there. For the World Cup 2022, FourFourTwo currently recommends:

UK

All of the games in the UK are either on the BBC or ITV.

USA

Fox are the World Cup rights holders in the States. Games are on Fox or FS1 cable channels.

If you don't have cable, you can use services such Sling and FuboTV to get the Fox channels. You can also watch the games on Peacock TV with Spanish commentary.

Canada

TSN is showing every game. You can subscribe for direct streaming or get it as part of your cable package.

Australia

As in the UK, coverage of the World Cup 2022 is entirely free to air. You can watch all 64 games on the SBS TV channel and stream it online too with SBS On Demand.

New Zealand

Paid provider Sky Sports are the World Cup 2022 rights holders in New Zealand. You can watch as part of your Sky subscription of pick up a Sky Now TV pass. There is also a 7-day free trial.