When is the World Cup 2022 final? Date and kick-off time

The 22nd edition of the FIFA World Cup is in full swing in Qatar. Here is what you need to know about the knockout stages of the tournament before the December 18 final.

When is the World Cup final?

The World Cup final will be held on Sunday, December 18 which is Qatar National Day. The match will kick off at 1500 GMT (6pm local time).

Which stadium is hosting the final?

The 80,000-capacity Lusail Iconic Stadium, which is 15km north of central Doha and the largest venue for the tournament, will host the World Cup title clash.

Who are the favourites?

Bookmakers William Hill, Bet365 and Ladbrokes have listed defending champions France as the favourites to win the World Cup ahead of Argentina and Croatia.

Who will meet in the semi-finals and when?

Argentina v Croatia - December 13.

France v Morocco - December 14.

What happened in the quarter-finals?

Croatia v Brazil

Croatia stunned favourites Brazil 4-2 on penalties to reach the semi-finals for the second time in a row after battling back from a goal down in extra time.

Netherlands v Argentina

Argentina beat the Netherlands 4-3 in a penalty shootout to keep captain Lionel Messi's World Cup dreams alive after the Dutch had snatched a 2-2 draw with two late goals in a gripping quarter-final.

Morocco v Portugal

Morocco's extraordinary run in Qatar continued as they claimed another massive scalp by beating Portugal 1-0 to become the first African and Arab country to reach the semi-finals of the tournament.

England v France

Olivier Giroud sent France into the last four when his late header after Aurelien Tchouameni's opener clinched a gutsy 2-1 win over England on Saturday. England's Harry Kane blazed a penalty over the bar six minutes from time.

Who made it out of the group stage?

GROUP A: Qatar (hosts), Ecuador, Senegal*, Netherlands*.

GROUP B: England*, Iran, United States*, Wales.

GROUP C: Argentina*, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Poland*.

GROUP D: France*, Australia*, Denmark, Tunisia.

GROUP E: Spain*, Costa Rica, Germany, Japan*.

GROUP F: Belgium, Canada, Morocco*, Croatia*.

GROUP G: Brazil*, Serbia, Switzerland*, Cameroon.

GROUP H: Portugal*, Ghana, Uruguay, South Korea*.

Teams that qualified for the last 16.

The group stage was a round-robin format with each of the 32 teams playing three matches. Teams were awarded three points for a win and one for a draw. The top two teams in each group went through to the last 16.

The first knockout round kicked off on December 3. It will be followed by the quarter-finals from December 9 and the semi-finals from December 13.

The knockout rounds will feature one-off matches, which can go to extra time and then penalties to decide the winner.

The third-place playoff between the losing semi-finalists take places on December 17 at the Khalifa International Stadium.