The world's biggest and most awaited sporting event, the football World Cup kicks off in Sao Paulo, Brazil late tonight.

The month-long tournament will begin with an opening ceremony at the Arena Corinthians in Sao Paulo that will feature live performances from some of the biggest stars of the world.

The half-an-hour ceremony will take place around a glowing spherical centerpiece symbolizing a soccer ball.

Made of 90,000 light clusters, the ball will have a total luminence of 7,000 Lux. Around 600 artists, including acrobatic gymnasts, martial arts-style performers and stilt walkers will also take part in the event.

The opening ceremony will be followed by the tournament opener, a Pool-A fixture between hosts Brazil and Croatia. The match will be played at 1:30 am, Indian Standard Time.

32 teams have been divided into 8 groups. The opening or the group stage will be a round-robin competition, and top two teams of each group will advance to the knock-out stage.

Brazil, Argentina, Germany, defending champions Spain and the Netherlands are entering the competition as favourites, with Belgium and Uruguay the dark horses.