World Cup briefing: England v Iran at 1pm

Not feeling excited by the Qatar 2022 World Cup? Need a reason to watch today’s games? Let Morning Wire get you in the mood.

Group B: England v Iran, 1pm, BBC

England begin their bid to go one better than their runner-up finish at last year’s European Championship when they play Iran this afternoon. 

They will be expected to open with a win, despite poor results so far this year. Iran are probably the least fancied side in the group, but are 20th in Fifa’s world rankings and are unlikely to be pushovers.

Group A: Senegal v Netherlands, 4pm, ITV

Senegal are competing in just their third World Cup but come into this edition as Africa Cup of Nations champions. They begin in Qatar against the Netherlands, who failed to qualify for the last tournament in Russia but have improved since. 

Senegal’s appearance will bring back memories, for some, of their 2002 defeat of then-champions France, one of the greatest upsets in the history of the World Cup. 

Group B: USA v Wales, 7pm, ITV

In a group that wouldn’t look out of place at a nuclear climbdown summit, Wales will play their first World Cup match since 1958 against the United States. 

Wales made it to the quarter-finals 64 years ago, where they lost 1-0 to eventual winners Brazil. 

There’s pressure on the USA, given that they will be one of the three hosts of the next World Cup. They weren’t in Russia, so they’ll be keen to hit the ground running ahead of 2026.