Qatar’s status as sports destination has strengthened over the period of past year.The country has emerged as a sports destination which has attracted the attention of sport federations, clubs, athletes and fans across the globe.
Over the past few years, Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA) has succeeded in attracting the attention of sports fans around the world to Qatar and highlighting the world-class facilities by holding several local and international partnerships with major sports institutions.
Qatar annually hosts around 80 sport events and world-class championships in various sports. Qatar is the first country in the Middle East to be honoured to host the 2019 World Championships in Athletics, 2022 FIFA World Cup and 2023 World Aquatics Championships. These tournaments provide a unique opportunity for the Qatari tourism sector to benefit from the global audience and provide unique country experiences.
Sports tourism highlights Qatar’s capacities and facilities, and is also one of the tourist attractions that Qatar Tourism Authority is working to promote and increase its diversity.
Qatar’s winter weather has encouraged many international sports clubs and federations to set up their winter camps in Doha.
Since 2012, QTA and Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) are collaborating in a strategic partnership aimed at promoting sports tourism and leisure tourism offered by Qatar. QTA hosted several tours of PSG teams, including PSG handball team tour in 2014 and 2015, PSG women’s tour in 2015, PSG football team tours in winter 2013 and 2015.
It also hosted the winter tour of the club last December, which was attended by all the stars of the team such as Neymar and Cavani. PSG stars filmed a video about Qatar and what it offers to adventure enthusiasts. The video was watched by millions of fans around the world.
QTA’s strategy to develop sports tourism focuses on four categories of games; traditional games such as football and tennis, heritage games such as camel racing and falconry, mental games such as chess and scorpion, and group games such as triathlon and cycling.
QTA continues its efforts to develop the sports tourism sector in Qatar by supporting local events and raising its international standing to attract fans and athletes from all over the world.
In 2018, QTA signed a three-year agreement to support the Ooredoo Doha Marathon. The 2018 marathon saw the participation of 2,400 from 83 nationalities, with 18 world runners participating.
In the coming years, QTA will support more exciting events and market opportunities to attract visitors from around the world. Sports tourism in the country is bound to witness remarkable growth and development in the coming years.
