Complete guide to the Three Lions qualification campaign for the Qatar tournament next year
England kicked off their qualification campaign for World Cup 2022 in March 2021 and Gareth Southgate’s Three Lions will no doubt be aiming to top their group.
Having steered the team to a fourth-place finish at the 2018 World Cup in Russia and runners-up at Euro 2020, Southgate et al know that they have what it takes to challenge, but they’ll have to qualify first.
Here, Goal has everything you need to know about England’s World Cup 2022 qualifying campaign, including group standings, fixtures, results and more.
On this page
- England World Cup 2022 qualifying group
- England World Cup 2022 qualifying fixtures & results
- How can I watch England’s World Cup qualifying on TV?
- When does World Cup 2022 take place?
England World Cup 2022 qualifying group
| Pos | Team | MP | W | D | L | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | England | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | +8 | 9 |
| 2 | Hungary | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | +6 | 7 |
| 3 | Albania | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | +1 | 6 |
| 4 | Poland | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | +1 | 4 |
| 5 | Andorra | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | -7 | 0 |
| 6 | San Marino | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | -10 | 0 |
England have been drawn in Group I of UEFA’s FIFA World Cup qualification cycle. The draw was held in December 2020.
The Three Lions come up against Robert Lewandowski’s Poland, along with Hungary, Albania, Andorra and San Marino.
Group winners will qualify automatically for the World Cup and the team which finishes second will have to navigate through the play-offs.
Each team in the group plays the other five teams twice – home and away – meaning England must fulfil a total of 10 fixtures.
England World Cup 2022 qualifying fixtures & results
England began their World Cup 2022 qualification campaign with a comprehensive 5-0 home victory against San Marino on March 25. That game marked the start of a three-game cycle in March, which also saw the Three Lions beat Albania 2-0 away then overcome Poland 2-1 at Wembley.
Three more qualifiers are scheduled for September, with Hungary (September 2), Andorra (September 5) and Poland (September 8) providing the opposition.
England will play two World Cup qualification matches in October – against Andorra away on October 9 and Hungary at home on October 12 – before concluding the campaign in November with games against Albania (November 12) and San Marino (November 15).
You can see all of England’s World Cup qualifying matches from Group I below.
| Date | Match | Kick-off (UK time) | TV channel |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 25 | England 5-0 San Marino | 7:45pm | ITV |
| Mar 28 | Albania 0-2 England | 5pm | ITV |
| Mar 31 | England 2-1 Poland | 7:45pm | ITV |
| Sep 2 | Hungary vs England | 7:45pm | ITV |
| Sep 5 | England vs Andorra | 5pm | ITV |
| Sep 8 | Poland vs England | 7:45pm | ITV |
| Oct 9 | Andorra vs England | 7:45pm | ITV |
| Oct 12 | England vs Hungary | 7:45pm | ITV |
| Nov 12 | England vs Albania | 7:45pm | ITV |
| Nov 15 | San Marino vs England | 7:45pm | ITV |
Of course, England’s World Cup qualification campaign was interrupted by Euro 2020, with Southgate’s side reaching the final, where they lost on penalties to Italy.
Having progressed from a group containing Croatia, Scotland and Czech Republic, England beat Germany, Ukraine and Denmark on their way to the final.
Despite taking the lead through Luke Shaw at Wembley in the final, Italy roared back into the game and equalised through Leonardo Bonucci.
Unable to be separated over 120 minutes, the match went to penalties, with the Azzurri triumphing 3-2 in the shootout.
How can I watch England’s World Cup 2022 qualifying on TV?
ITV has the broadcasting rights to show England’s World Cup qualifiers on TV in the United Kingdom (UK).
The ITV Hub is the network’s online streaming service and it can be accessed via web browsers or through the ITV app. However, it should be noted that some ITV programming may not be available online.
Which channel number is ITV?
- Channel 3 (Freeview)
- Channel 103 (Virgin Media)
- Channel 103 (Sky)
- Channel 103 (Freesat)
When does World Cup 2022 take place?
The 2022 World Cup is the first such tournament to be held in winter, with games scheduled to kick off on November 21, 2022 and the final will take place on December 18, 2022.
That means the tournament will begin roughly a year after the qualification group stage concludes and about eight months after the play-off stage, which will occur in March 2022.
World Cup 2022 will be hosted by Qatar and it will be the first time FIFA’s flagship football competition has been held in the Middle East, having already taken place in Europe, North America, South America, Africa and Asia.
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