The national soccer squad of Qatar will play Ecuador on Sunday to kick off the 2022 World Cup.

The tournament is a rare source of unity in a world that is so deeply divided. The five billion viewers FIFA, the world's governing body of soccer, anticipates, will make the month-long event the most watched sporting event in history.

The beginning also marks the conclusion of a 12-year process that has been more difficult and contentious than possibly any World Cup previously.

The 2010 World Cup was bought and paid for by Qatar. Officials from the United States, who ultimately lost the bidding war, claim that.

Then, because to worries about extreme heat in Qatar during the customary June–July World Cup window, the event was relocated to November–December.

Then, migrant workers responsible for constructing the World Cup's infrastructure started paying a price, according to human rights organisations.

Then worries surfaced over possible abuse of LGBTQ fans in Qatar, where homosexuality is prohibited.