Canada to face Belgium, Croatia and Morocco in group stage at World Cup in Qatar

Canada will face Croatia, Belgium and Morocco in the group stage at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. The eight groups were determined on Friday at the World Cup draw in Doha.

Thirty-two nations will compete at the World Cup, which runs from Nov. 21 to Dec. 18. The teams are divided into eight groups of four for the opening stage. Each team plays the others in its group once, with the top two advancing to the knockout stage.

Canada clinched its first World Cup berth since 1986 with a 4-0 win over Jamaica  on Sunday on at BMO Field in Toronto, but they fell to Panama 1-0 on Wednesday in the final match of their qualifying campaign.

The Canadians finished atop the CONCACAF standings with an 8-2-4 record, but they dropped five places to No. 38 in Thursday's FIFA men's world rankings — falling from their record-high of No. 33. The Canadians were grouped with the lowest-ranked teams for the World Cup draw in Pot 4.

More to come.

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