Japan know their path at the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Friday’s official draw placed the Samurai Blue into Group E alongside Spain, Germany, and the winner of the intercontinental play-off between Costa Rica and New Zealand.

Japan will open their World Cup campaign on November 23 in Qatar against Germany before meeting the play-off winner on November 27. They wrap up Group E action on December 1 against Spain.

If the Samurai Blue manage to advance past the group stage to the round of 16, they will meet a team from Group F, which consists of Belgium, Canada, Morocco, and Croatia.

Japan qualified for the World Cup last week with a 2-0 win over Australia in Sydney, marking the Samurai Blue’s seventh consecutive tournament appearance.

The national team is made up entirely of J.League products, with everyone in the Samurai Blue team either currently playing in Japan or previously for a J.League club before moving abroad. Now, that collection of players is set to take on the world in Qatar this winter, with a difficult Group E the first step in what they hope will be a deep World Cup run.