Italy was the only exception for automatic qualification as host of the second World Cup in 1934, when it had to beat Greece to advance. All eyes will be on Qatar — the first Arab country to host a World Cup — when “The Maroons” face Ecuador in the tournament opener on Nov. 20. “We will face very strong teams — teams that are used to being in the World Cup. More recently, Qatar’s emir publicly thanked Vladimir Putin for what he said was Russia’s support organizing the upcoming World Cup. ___AP World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/world-cup and https://twitter.com/AP_SportsThis story was originally published October 24, 2022 5:15 AM.

Source: The Herald October 24, 2022 09:32 UTC