Tickets for the UAE’s World Cup play-off against Australia next month will go on sale on Thursday.
The national team, seeking to reach a global finals for only the second time in the country’s history, take on Australia in Qatar on June 7 in what they hope will be the first of two qualifiers to reach football’s showpiece event later this year.
Should the UAE get past Australia, they then face Peru on June 13 for a place at the World Cup. All three play-off matches – Costa Rica face New Zealand on June 14 - will take place at the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium in Al Rayyan. Tickets, which start at QAR 30 ($9), will be made available online on Thursday from 3pm Doha time (4pm UAE).
Whichever team prevails from the UAE, Australia and Peru will go into Group D for the November 21-December 18 tournament alongside reigning world champions France, Denmark and Tunisia.
The winner of the match between Costa Rica and New Zealand will be placed in Group E, where they join Spain, Germany and Japan.
Qatar 2022 marks the first time the World Cup has been staged in the Gulf. The UAE have previously participated in a global finals once, in 1990.
The national team are currently preparing for the crucial Australia clash, with their domestic training camp beginning in Dubai on Tuesday. The UAE, now managed by Argentine Rodolfo Arruabarrena, play Gambia in a friendly on Sunday before travelling to Doha the following day.
