Qatar open their World Cup against Switzerland, two years after ending India’s qualifying run
The reigning Asian champions, who knocked India out of qualifying, return to the World Cup for the first time on merit. Switzerland, in the round of 16 at each of the last three tournaments, start as heavy favourites.
Jun 13, 2026
Indian football fans know Qatar well, and not fondly. The team that ended India’s 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign begins its own tournament on Saturday against Switzerland at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara. The Group B match kicks off at 12:30am IST on Sunday.
Qatar topped the Asian second-round group that contained India, Kuwait and Afghanistan, and they beat India 2-1 in the match that confirmed India’s exit. Now Julen Lopetegui’s side carry a different kind of pressure. This is Qatar’s first World Cup as qualifiers rather than hosts, and a chance to bury the memory of 2022.
Qatar’s shot at redemption
As hosts four years ago, Qatar became the first host nation to lose all three of their group games, a chastening way to arrive on the world stage. They have rebuilt since, winning back-to-back Asian Cups, the second on home soil, with Akram Afif and all-time leading scorer Almoez Ali driving the attack. Lopetegui, the former Spain and Real Madrid coach, has assembled his squad around that Asian-champion core. The talent that rules the continent now has to prove it travels.
Switzerland’s quiet consistency
Switzerland are the kind of opponent nobody enjoys drawing. Murat Yakin’s team, captained by Granit Xhaka, are at their 13th World Cup and have reached the round of 16 at each of the last three. They rarely overwhelm anyone, but they rarely beat themselves either, and against a Qatar side short of recent wins they will back themselves to open with three points. Going beyond the last 16 is the barrier the Swiss keep running into, though that is a worry for later.
What it means for the group
Group B is already moving. Canada, one of the host nations, drew their opener with Bosnia and Herzegovina, so a win here would push Qatar or Switzerland straight to the top. For Indian viewers staying up past midnight, there is an extra edge to this one. The side that shut the door on India’s World Cup hopes is finally walking through one of its own.