Where to watch the World Cup as the tournament gets underway in Qatar

The 2022 FIFA World Cup got underway in the small hours of Monday as hosts Qatar and Ecuador faced off in the opening clash, with Qatar losing 2-0 to become the first host nation to lose the opening match of the tournament.

In all, 64 matches will take place over the next month in arguably the biggest sporting event in the world with Australia placed in Group D alongside defending champions France, Denmark and Tunisia.

For regional fans, the world game will be broadcast via traditional soccer broadcaster SBS following Optus Sports losing TV rights after their 2018 coverage was plagued with technical issues.

All 64 matches will be streamed via their SBS On Demand service while also being broadcast via terrestrial channel SBS, with SBS Viceland being used when two games are on at the same time.

For Australian fans, it will be an early morning or late night depending on your view as they get underway against France at 3am Wednesday televised on SBS.

Their other two matches are in more forgiving timeslots with their clash against Tunisia slated for 6pm Saturday November 26, while they play Denmark in their final group game at 11pm November 30.

Both matches will also be televised on the main SBS channel.

Australia were dealt a blow on the eve of their campaign losing key wingman Martin Boyle with Marco Tilio brought in as a replacement.