32 nations will compete in eight groups of four, with four matches to be played over a 12-day period during the group stage. The winners and runners-up will then progress to the round of 16.
Stars including Virgil van Dijk (Netherlands), Aaron Ramsey (Wales), Jason Cummings (Australia), Eiji Kawashima (Japan) and Jackson Irvine (Australia) will be familiar to many followers of Scottish football, who are set to feature in the Middle East over the coming weeks.
Scotland have endured some truly bruising moments in the pursuit of tournament football since France 98’ and Steve Clarke’s side fell agonisingly short of booking their place once again after suffering a 3-1 play-off semi-final defeat to Ukraine at Hampden Park back in June.
However, there will be some Scottish representation in Qatar with 13 players currently plying their trade in the top-flight selected by their respecitve countries. SEVEN of those will appear for Australia, while Celtic and Rangers both have players involved.
Which nations will compete at the finals?
GROUP A - Qatar (host), Ecuador, Senegal, Netherlands
GROUP B - England, Iran, USA, Wales
GROUP C - Argentina, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Poland
GROUP D - France, Australia, Denmark, Tunisia
GROUP E - Spain, Costa Rica, Germany, Japan
GROUP F - Belgium, Canada, Morocco, Croatia
GROUP G - Brazil, Serbia, Switzerland, Cameroon
GROUP H - Portugal, Ghana, Uruguay, South Korea
Which Scottish Premiership stars will feature?
1. CAMERON CARTER-VICKERS - Celtic
USA (11 caps) - The centre-back has been a mainstay in the Hoops side and is currently sporting the captain’s armband. Could make a huge impact for Gregg Berhalter’s squad Photo: Ross MacDonald - SNS Group
2. DYLAN LEVITT - Dundee United
Wales (13 caps) - Attacking midfielder joined the Tangerines on a permanent basis from Manchester United U/23s after a successful loan spell last term. Expected to feature alongside Gareth Bale and Aaron Ramsey Photo: Paul Devlin - SNS Group
3. CAMERON DEVLIN - Heart of Midlothian
Australia (1 cap) - Defensive midfielder will have his sights set on adding to his solitary cap during a friendly against New Zealand in September
4. BORNA BARISIC - Rangers
Croatia (27 caps, 1 goal) - Left-back has been a regular feature in Zlatko Dalic’s national team in recent years, scoring his first international goal in a Euro 2020 qualifier against Azerbaijan Photo: Mark Scates - SNS Group