- Valencia header doubles Ecuador lead
- Enner Valencia converts penalty to give Ecuador lead
England leave Doha hotel for Khalifa stadium
The National's Sarah Forster is at England's Souq Al-Wakra hotel, where the squad has just departed for Khalifa stadium.
Manager Gareth Southgate led the squad from the Souq Al-Wakra hotel onto a coach.
The team is making the roughly 25 minute journey by coach to central Doha for their match against Iran at 5pm Gulf time.
Already thousands of England and Iran fans are arriving ahead of kick-off in just under two hours.
Iran fans out in force for England game
Iran is the top-ranked Asian team at number 20 in the world, ahead of Japan and South Korea.
Some commentators believe they may be the dark horses of the tournament and give England a run for their money today.
We'll find out in just over two hours' time.
There's a number of fans holding placards and protesting at Iran's regime and treatment of women, following a recent crackdown on women who refuse to wear the hijab.
World Cup opening day concludes as England, USA and Senegal feature on Day 2
Ecuador eased past World Cup debutants Qatar 2-0 on Sunday with first-half goals from veteran striker Enner Valencia in a one-sided affair that was the first opening game defeat for a host nation in the tournament's history.
On Day 2, England will begin their quest for success when they face Iran at the Khalifa International Stadium on Monday.
Back in the World Cup after missing the 2018 tournament, the US opens against Wales on Monday and will meet England on Friday.
The third and final match on Monday will see the Netherlands face Senegal in their opening Group A match.
Sanchez: Nervous Qatar 'felt supported' despite fan exodus in World Cup opener
Qatar coach Felix Sanchez said his team "felt supported" even though thousands of fans left early as the World Cup hosts slumped to a 2-0 defeat against Ecuador in Sunday's opening game.
Sanchez's side were punished for a slow start at Al Bayt Stadium by Enner Valencia's double.
Defeat means Qatar are the first host country in the tournament's 92-year history to lose their opening game.
"We have felt supported," said Sanchez, even though most home supporters left before full-time.
"I hope the people at the next game will be more proud. People know that we can give more.”
- AFP
Fifa: 2.95 million World Cup tickets sold
The start of the World Cup has led to a surge of interest in the 64 matches, which will be played over 29 days, despite negative publicity over Qatar's hosting.
Queues have built up outside the Fifa ticket centre in Doha and fans report long waits to get onto the official online ticket platform.
Qatar has already overtaken Russia 2018, when slightly more than 2.4 million tickets were sold.
- AFP
Enner Valencia spoils the party as Ecuador win World Cup opener against Qatar
John McAuley reports:
With the long, sometimes agonising, wait finally over, Qatar’s quest for a statement worthy of the occasion was extinguished not long after Morgan Freeman and the fireworks.
Ecuador and Enner Valencia were the great party poopers on Sunday night in Al Khor, with the South Americans striking twice early on to claim the opening match of the first Fifa World Cup held in the Middle East.
Qatar were history makers in more than one way, initially as the trailblazing Arab hosts of football’s marquee tournament, then as the only home team to lose on their big bow.
Qatar's Bedouin roots star in World Cup opening ceremony
Qatar's Bedouin roots, embodied in a tent-shaped stadium, were on display on Sunday as the country's Emir, Sheikh Tamim, opened the World Cup.
"From Qatar, from the Arab world, I welcome everyone to the World Cup 2022," Sheikh Tamim said.
"How lovely it is that people can put aside what divides them to celebrate their diversity and what brings them together."
Then, fireworks exploded from the roof of Al Bayt Stadium, 35km north of the capital, Doha.
Earlier, the nearly full stadium erupted in cheers when Sheikh Tamim arrived at the stadium with Fifa president Gianni Infantino.
Sheikh Tamim waved to the crowd and leaned down to kiss the hand of his father, former ruler Sheikh Hamad, who abdicated in 2013.
Then the lights dimmed and three camels, dancers and Qatari singer Dana Al Fardan, who wore a traditional batola, a leather face-covering worn by some women in the Gulf region, filed on to the pitch.
American actor Morgan Freeman followed alongside Ghanim Al Muftah, 20, a Qatari YouTuber who was born with a rare condition that impairs the development of the lower spine.
Freeman sat on the pitch beside Al Muftah.
"How can so many countries, languages and cultures come together if only one way is accepted?" he asked the crowd.
"When you call here, we welcome you into our home," Al Muftah said, referring to the "bayt al sha'ar" or tent that nomadic Bedouins of the Arabian Peninsula once used for shelter, which inspired the stadium design.
- Reuters
World Cup dismay for Qatar as Ecuador win opening game
Qatar’s first World Cup match ended in dismay.
The tournament opened on Sunday with the hosts being outplayed in a 2-0 loss to Ecuador in front of 67,372 fans at Al Bayt Stadium.
In 92 years of football’s biggest event, a host team has never lost its opening game.
Dubai fan zone buzzes with talk of spare tickets, pricey flights and who to cheer for
Patrick Ryan in Dubai reports:
World Cup fever was in full swing as hundreds of supporters gathered at the fan zone in Dubai Media City on Sunday evening.
Football fans from all parts of the world mingled and soaked up the atmosphere ahead of the opening game between hosts Qatar and Ecuador.
All the talk among supporters was about who would win the tournament and how far their own nations would get in the competition.
Other fans wondered aloud how they could get tickets for certain games while others asked if they should sell theirs and stay in Dubai instead to watch the action.
Royals at Fifa World Cup in Qatar
78 mins: Ecuador's Sarmiento with a rush of blood to the head there. He blasts one over the bar from just outside the box and is relieved to see the offside flag go up.