The historic FIFA World Cup 2022 is just around the corner and Qatar is ready to host international football’s strongest 32 teams for the first edition of the tournament to be held in the Middle East and the Arab world. Excitement is in the air as the host country is decked up with the World Cup-related images including posters of football superstars.
All the eight state-of-the-art stadiums are ready to host the teams with an estimated 1.5 million fans expected to visit Qatar during the World Cup to be staged from November 20 to December 18. The other major infrastructure has already started operations.
With less than 50 days remaining to the big kick off, football festival has already started in the country through different programmes including the mall activations with events at Mall of Qatar, Place Vendome and Doha Festival City drawing huge number of fans.
The international fans have already been informed about the COVID-19 Travel & Return Policy, updated by the Ministry of Public Health for the mega event, giving them ample time to familiarise with the rules. Arrangements for accommodation are also in place with different options for fans according to their budget.
Qatar’s arrangements for the World Cup have already started showing positive signs as the host country is expected to make a profit of around $17bn, according to the CEO of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Nasser Al Khater. He said the cost of infrastructure and construction expenses for the World Cup has reached $8bn, which is relatively close to the cost of previous World Cups. “This means we will achieve revenues that are double the cost, and that Qatar will reap the fruits of the World Cup during and after the tournament,” Al Khater said. The success of the World Cup in Qatar has also been dubbed as key to Qatar’s National Vision 2030.
Meanwhile, Al Annabi’s preparation for their World Cup debut is also on track. Qatar are scheduled to hold an open training session in Doha today before returning to Spain for final phase of preparation before their opening Group A match against Ecuador. Their performance in the last international friendly against Chile in Vienna was impressive as they held their higher-ranked opponents to a 2-2 draw.
Al Annabi have undergone robust preparations in the last few months including training camps in Spain and Austria as the team management is determined to ensure best possible preparation for the team before they enter the Al Bayt Stadium on November 20 for their opening game, which will be Qatar’s big moment.
