Qatar relocate three World Cup warm-up ties to Hungary

Qatar have relocated three upcoming World Cup 2022 warm-up games from Austria to the Hungarian city of Debrecen over coronavirus travel constraints, the Qatari Football Association(QFA) said Monday.

As the host nation, Qatar has automatically qualified for the tournament, but were invited by UEFA -- the sport's governing body in Europe -- to get match practise in the European qualifiers.

The Asian champions' "home" fixtures will be played in Europe to facilitate shorter travel times for their group opponents.

Qatar join Group A, alongside Euro 2016 winners Portugal, Serbia, Ireland, Luxembourg, and Azerbaijan.

The QFA originally planned to hold a training camp in Austria and to play Luxembourg and Azerbaijan in Vienna ahead of a trip to Dublin.

But it switched the venue to Hungary due to Covid-19 travel restrictions between Austria and Ireland, the QFA said in a statement on Monday.

Qatar's games against Luxembourg (March 24), Azerbaijan (March 27) and Ireland (March 30) will now take place in Debrecen, it said.