Qatar vs Ecuador Betting Tips, Predictions, Odds and Offers

With the 2022 World Cup fast approaching, it will be the Middle East that steals all of the focus as we look set for a record-making tournament and the first match is Qatar vs Ecuador. Get our betting tips and match preview below.

While world football’s elite all have their sights set on writing their own piece of history over the festive period, Qatar will get things underway on November 20th when they meet Ecuador at the Al Bayt Stadium.

As the World Cup prepares for its first winter tournament, fans from across the globe are bracing themselves for a monumental month of international action.

Although Qatar might be looking to open their first-ever World Cup adventure with an early statement in Al Khor, Ecuador will undoubtedly be looking to upset the party and get three points on the board.

 

Qatar vs Ecuador Betting Preview

The first match of a World Cup is always a huge occasion and Qatar vs Ecuador will be no different on Sunday 20th December 2022. The whole world will be watching as the two sides kick off the controversial World Cup in the middle east and in the latest betting odds, Ecuador are favourites to upset the hosts and win the match at 11/10 with Betfred.

Qatar’s odds to beat Ecuador in the opening match of the 2022 World Cup are 13/5 with bet365 and if you are predicting the first match of the tournament to end in a draw, LiveScore Bet will give you odds of 23/10, meaning a £10 bet would return £33.

Correct score betting is always popular and give that the bookies are expecting a win for Ecuador, it is no surprise to see that Ecuador to win 1-0 is the shortest odds of the score betting, at 6/1.

You will get the same odds for the match to end in a 1-1 draw and if you are predicting a win for Qatar, have a bet on the hosts to win 1-0 at odds of 10/1 with bet365.

A £10 bet on Qatar to beat Ecuador 1-0 returns £110 and if you use the bet365 World Cup free bet offer, you will also qualify for £50 in free bets as a new customer.

As football fans prepare for what will be the most unique World Cup in history, it is fair to say that Qatar have embarked on an equally-unique build-up to this year’s tournament.

Handed their first appearance at a World Cup finals after controversially being selected as the host nation back in 2010, Felix Sanchez’s side have only featured in friendly showdowns over the past 11 months.

Not seen in competitive action since clinching a bronze medal finish at the FIFA Arab Cup thanks to a nail-biting penalties victory against Egypt, the Maroons focused the majority of their pre-tournament preparations playing against European-based club sides.

Along with friendly meetings against Italian giants Fiorentina and Lazio, Qatar also challenged clubs from the likes of Belgium, Slovakia and Spain.

However, despite suffering deserved back-to-back defeats against Canada and Croatia U23s during September’s international break, this year’s host nation should find the mood in their camp at a red-hot high.

Squeezing in a trio of friendly meetings against Guatemala, Honduras and Panama over the past three weeks, Sanchez’s side also still finds themselves sitting in the top 50 of the FIFA rankings.

Eventually managing to punch their automatic ticket to Qatar after fending off Peru thanks to a two-point buffer during this year’s South American qualifiers, Ecuador are relishing their return to the world stage.

Not featuring in Russia four years ago and coming under a huge amount of scrutiny back home, La Tri have largely impressed during their two-year reign under Gustavo Alfaro.

However, playing out back-to-back 0-0 stalemates against Japan and Saudi Arabia in a pair of friendly matchups during September’s international break, Ecuador have shown some extended issues in the final third.

Along with remarkably playing out a stalemate in seven of their previous 10 appearances across all competitions, the one-time Boca Juniors boss has seen his side bag just two goals in over 550 minutes of action.

Looking to burst Qatar’s bubble on November 20th, Ecuador will be hoping for a better showing than they managed in their only previous meeting against the World Cup’s host nation.

Slumping to an action-packed 4-3 loss in Doha when they faced off against the Maroons in a friendly contest four years ago, Alfaro’s side will be hoping to get their Group A adventure off to a flying start.

 

Qatar vs Ecuador Predictions

While Qatar and Ecuador might have played out a seven-goal thriller when they battled it out in a friendly showdown four years ago, neutrals shouldn’t be expecting another free-scoring affair on November 20th.

Although it might have become almost routine for the host nation of a World Cup to open proceedings with a victory, the Maroons should face a rugged task in Al Khor.

Despite Ecuador showing some toothless displays in the final third over recent months, they have only continued to shine with their resilient defensive performances.

Opening up their Group A adventure after recording five clean sheets on the bounce, La Tri could be looking to lay down an early marker.

With Valencia enjoying quite the free-scoring run since opening the 2022/23 campaign with Fenerbahce, Ecuador should be confident of ruining Qatar’s party.

ECUADOR win: 11/10 @ Betfred

A £10 bet on Ecuador to beat Qatar returns £21 at the current odds and there will be the opportunity to use one of the World Cup betting offers to get some free bets for the tournament when you place a bet on the opening match. For example, if you open a Betfred account and bet £10 on Qatar vs Ecuador, you will get £60 in free bets added to your new account.

This isn’t the only offer available though so if you do want to collect some free bets for the bigger matches to come, scroll down to the bottom of this page and get our list of offers you could use for betting on the opening round of World Cup fixtures.

ECUADOR win 1-0: 13/2 @ bet365

Everything points to a close game when Qatar play Ecuador on 20th November and that leads us to think a score prediction of Ecuador to win 1-0 could prove to be a good bet. The South American’s are going into the World Cup with a decent defensive record and although they struggle to score goals, Qatar look set to struggle at their home World Cup and it would be no surprise to see them left disappointed after their first match of the tournament.

 

Qatar Star Player: Hassan Al-Haydos

If Qatar are to spring a major Group A upset this year and lay down an early marker at the Al Bayt Stadium, there is no doubt that the Maroons will be calling on their attacking icon to spearhead their history-making campaign.

While Qatar might have a squad that almost exclusively plies their trade in the Middle Eastern leagues, it will be Hassan Al-Haydos who will lead his nation out in Al Khor.

Bagging a pre-tournament brace in Qatar’s 2-0 victory against Guatemala on October 23rd, the Al-Sadd record-breaker is Qatar’s most-capped player after making 167 appearances in an international career that stems all the way back to 2008.

 

Ecuador Star Player: Enner Valencia

Enjoying a new lease of life with Turkish giants Fenerbahce and mustering nine goals from his opening 10 Super Lig appearances this season, captain and talisman Enner Valencia is certainly the man to watch for Ecuador this winter.

Becoming their all-time top goalscorer last year, the ex-West Ham striker is now sitting on 35 international strikes.

However, while it might be Valencia who will lead Ecuador’s charge in the Middle East, Alfaro also has a pair of Premier League-based stars at his disposal.

The Brighton duo of Pervis Estupinan and highly-rated Moises Caicedo will play a crucial role in Ecuador’s dreams of finding a route out of Group A.

 

Qatar vs Ecuador Betting Tips

ECUADOR win: 11/10 @ Betfred ECUADOR win 1-0: 13/2 @ bet365

 

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Qatar vs Ecuador Key Questions

What time does Qatar vs Ecuador kick-off?

The first match of the 2022 World Cup kicks-off at 4pm (UK time) on Sunday 20th November.

Who will win? Qatar or Ecuador?

Our Qatar vs Ecuador betting tips are predicting a 1-0 win for Ecuador in the first match of the 2022 World Cup.

Is Qatar vs Ecuador on TV?

Yes, you can watch Qatar vs Ecuador on TV around the world including on BBC One in the UK.

What are Qatar's odds to beat Ecuador?

Qatar's odds to beat Ecuador in the first match of the 2022 World Cup are 14/5. The odds for Ecuador to win are 11/10 and the draw is 13/5.

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