Qatar will be involved in Uefa's qualifying for the 2022 World Cup the country are hosting, and are set to be placed in one of the five-team groups.
The idea will be to balance out the groups and also give the hosts essential preparation games ahead of a landmark event for the country's football culture.
Sources state it is most likely Qatar will be placed in Group A - featuring Ireland, Portugal, Luxembourg, Serbia and Azerbaijan - although negotiations could yet them be put in Groups B, D or E.
The move comes after negotiations between the AFC and Uefa, and isn't the first time the 2022 hosts have been involved in such a move across confederations.
They have participated in the Copa America in 2019, and are set to be invited back in 2021.
READ MORE: World Cup 2022 qualification - fixtures, schedule and groups in full on the road to Qatar
They will also take part in the Concacaf Gold Cup, as the home federation seeks to have a team capable of qualifying for the knock-out stages of their own World Cup.
Points against Qatar are unlikely to count towards the group, and they will just allow the team with a match-day off to play a semi-competitive fixture rather than a friendly.
Fixture dates for all qualifiers, including those involving Qatar, are set to be confirmed by Uefa on Tuesday.
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