World Cup Final Draw in Moscow: All You Need to Know

The draw for the group stage will take place from 3pm GMT on Friday, December 1, in the Kremlin Palace, just off Red Square in Moscow.

President Vladimir Putin will make a short speech welcoming the footballing world to Russia.

Thirty-two teams will be divided into eight groups, with Russia, as the host country, placed in Group A.

The draw will also prove crucial for the later stages.

"The draw is a historic event, an emotional stage of the preparations for the World Cup," said Vitaly Mutko, Russia's Deputy Prime Minister and chairman of the World Cup organizing committee.

Who Is in Each Pot?

Pot 1 includes Russia, the holders Germany, five-times winners Brazil, Argentina — who have won the tournament twice — France, Portugal, Belgium and Poland.

Pots 2 includes Spain, who won it in South Africa in 2010, England, Uruguay — who won the World Cup twice in the 1930s — Croatia, Colombia, Mexico and Switzerland.

Pot 3 includes Denmark, Sweden, Iceland, Iran, Costa Rica, Tunisia, Egypt and Senegal.

Pot 4 includes Serbia, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria, Australia, Japan, Morocco, Panama and South Korea.

So Russia, Germany, Brazil and Argentina cannot be drawn against each other in the group stage and England know they will not be in the same group as Spain.

But a number of intriguing and mouth-watering clashes are possible.

Russia Could Be Drawn Against England

Russia could be drawn in the same group as England but only two countries from Europe are allowed in each group.

FIFA has also ruled that countries from the same continent should not be drawn together unless it is unavoidable.

​So Iran and Saudi Arabia — currently involved in a power struggle in the Middle East — are unlikely to be drawn together at the group stage.

That is less the case with Europe because there are so many European teams in the draw so we could see old rivals Serbia and Croatia in the same group.

England might also be hoping to avoid being drawn against tiny Iceland, who ignominiously knocked them out of the European Championships last year.

Russia Hosting World Cup for the First Time

Russia is hosting its first World Cup between June 14 and July 15, 2018.

​The games will take place in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kaliningrad, Volgograd, Kazan, Nizhny Novgorod, Samara, Saransk, Rostov-on-Don, Yekaterinburg and Sochi.

Kazan is the capital of the autonomous Republic of Tatarstan and on Wednesday, November 29, President Rustam Minnikanov said he was hoping England would be drawn in Kazan.

"This is going to be a really exciting period. From our point of view, the draw is the next stage of being able to plan properly," said England manager Gareth Southgate.

Southgate, who famously missed a penalty in Euro 1996 when England were knocked out by Germany, took over a year ago after Sam Allardyce resigned.

Possible 'Group of Death'

The worst case scenario for Southgate would be for England to draw Germany, Egypt and Serbia.

​Probably the easiest group England could get would be Poland, Iran and Panama.

Fans from all the countries involved will be eagerly looking at which cities their teams will play in with some venues — Moscow, St Petersburg and Sochi — perhaps more popular than others.

But all of the host cities have their attractions and all are well connected by air, train and road from Moscow.