The final rounds of the FIFA World Cup 2022 qualifiers will commence from Thursday, March 24.

The first set of matches will be played in the AFC confederation, where Australia, Japan and Saudi Arabia will battle for the final two spots to join South Korea and Iran at the main event in November 2022.

The final two rounds of the AFC round qualifiers are scheduled for March 24 and March 29.

In Africa, the 10 group winners from the second round of the CAF qualifiers will cross swords in the third round. The first leg games will be played on March 25, while the second legs will be held on March 29.

The five winners from each fixture will directly qualify for the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar.

In Europe, Portugal and Italy will be under the spotlight as both teams chase a spot in the World Cup finals. The European giants are drawn together in playoff Path C, where wins in their respective fixtures against Turkey and North Macedonia will pit Cristiano Ronaldo’s men against Giorgio Chiellini’s Azzurri.

Robert Lewandowski’s Poland will meet the winner of the Path B semi-final between Sweden and Czech Republic. The Polish, who were to face Russia in the first semi-final, were given a bye following Russia’s indefinite suspension from all football activities by FIFA.

The Path A playoffs will resume in June with the winner of the Wales and Austria semi-final fixture set to meet the winner from Scotland’s clash against Ukraine.

Meanwhile, USA, Mexico and Canada will look to seal the three direct places from the CONCACAF confederation in the final round of qualifiers, starting March 24.

USA take on Mexico in one of the biggest games of the upcoming FIFA World Cup 2022 qualifiers, while Canada, who have 25 points from 11 games, face Costa Rica in the first of their final three games in the qualifying schedule.

Elsewhere, Ecuador are well-placed to register a third-place finish in the CONMEBOL World Cup qualifiers as they have tallied 25 points from 16 games. With 22 and 21 points respectively, Uruguay and Peru will go toe-to-toe to secure the final direct qualification berth from the South American confederation.

Furthermore, the Oceania FIFA World Cup 2022 playoff winners will also play the third-placed team from the third round of the CONCACAF qualifiers in the inter-confederation playoffs.

The other fixture in the inter-confederation playoffs will pit the fourth round (playoff) winner from AFC confederation against the fifth-best team in the CONMEBOL qualifiers.

FIFA World Cup 2022 qualifiers schedule, fixtures and India match times

Thursday, March 24

AFC

Australia vs Japan - 2:40 PM IST

South Korea vs Iran - 4:30 PM IST

Lebanon vs Syria - 5:30 PM IST

Vietnam vs Oman - 5:30 PM IST

China PR vs Saudi Arabia - 8:30 PM IST

Iraq vs UAE - 10:30 PM IST

OFC

Solomon Islands vs Tahiti - 7:30 PM IST

Fiji vs Papua New Guinea - 10:30 PM IST

New Zealand vs New Caledonia - 10:30 PM IST

Friday, March 25

UEFA

Italy vs North Macedonia - 1:15 AM IST

Portugal vs Turkey - 1:15 AM IST

Sweden vs Czech Republic - 1:15 AM IST

Wales vs Austria - 1:15 AM IST

CONMEBOL

Brazil vs Chile - 5 AM IST

Colombia vs Bolivia - 5 AM IST

Paraguay vs Ecuador - 5 AM IST

Uruguay vs Peru - 5 AM IST

CONCACAF

Jamaica vs El Salvador - 4:35 AM IST

Panama vs Honduras - 6:35 AM IST

Mexico vs USA - 7:30 AM IST

Costa Rica vs Canada - 7:35 AM IST

CAF

DR Congo vs Morocco - 8:30 PM IST

Cameroon vs Algeria - 10:30 PM IST

Mali vs Tunisia - 10:30 PM IST

Saturday, March 26

CAF

Egypt vs Senegal - 1 AM IST

Ghana vs Nigeria - 1 AM IST

CONMEBOL

Argentina vs Venezuela - 5 AM IST

Monday, March 28

CONCACAF

Canada vs Jamaica - 1:35 AM IST

El Salvador vs Costa Rica - 2:35 AM IST

USA vs Panama - 4:30 AM IST

Honduras vs Mexico - 4:35 AM IST

Tuesday, March 29

AFC

Japan vs Vietnam - 4:05 PM IST

Iran vs Lebanon - 5 PM IST

UAE vs South Korea - 7:15 PM IST 

Oman vs China PR - 9:30 PM IST

Syria vs Iraq - 9:30 PM IST

Saudi Arabia vs Australia - 11:30 PM IST

CAF

Nigeria vs Ghana - 10:30 PM IST

Senegal vs Egypt - 10:30 PM IST

Wednesday, March 30

UEFA

Poland vs Sweden/Czech Republic - 12:15 AM IST

Portugal/Turkey vs Italy/North Macedonia - 12:15 AM IST

CAF

Algeria vs Cameroon - 1 AM IST

Morocco vs DR Congo - 1 AM IST

Tunisia vs Mali - 1 AM IST

CONMEBOL

Bolivia vs Brazil - 5 AM IST

Chile vs Uruguay - 5 AM IST

Ecuador vs Argentina - 5 AM IST

Peru vs Paraguay - 5 AM IST

Venezuela vs Colombia - 5 AM IST

Thursday, March 31

CONCACAF

Costa Rica vs USA - 6:35 AM IST

Jamaica vs Honduras - 6:35 AM IST

Mexico vs El Salvador - 6:35 AM IST

Panama vs Canada - 6:35 AM IST

Where to watch the FIFA World Cup 2022 qualifiers live in India?

The FIFA World Cup 2022 qualifiers will be telecast live across the Sony Sports Network’s SD and HD TV channels in India.

Live streaming for the FIFA World Cup 2022 qualifiers will be available on the SonyLIV app and website.

Follow us on Telegram for the latest updates from the world of sports!

Interested in football betting? Click here to check out the list of top sites.

Featured photo: AFP / MARCO BERTORELLO