For the past few days, the streets of the West Bay district, the nerve center of Doha where the draw will be held at 7:00 p.m. local (6:00 p.m. French), have been adorned with flags and giant balloons in the colors of the qualifiers for the high mass of world football. .
On Wednesday afternoon, Cameroon, Canada, Ecuador, Ghana, Morocco, Poland, Portugal, Senegal and Tunisia joined the flags of the other qualifiers around the clock marking 235 days before the kick off of the competition.
Under the eyes of the police, a crowd of 200 supporters, unusual for the country, gathered on the emblematic Corniche, by the sea, to watch their colors rise while singing their national anthems.
Ghanaian fans pose with their flag on March 30, 2022 in the West Bay district of Doha, the day after their team qualified for the World Cup in Qatar (November 21 - December 18) KARIM JAAFAR AFP
Qatari authorities, sensitive to security issues, hoped to keep fans away from this ceremony.
"Due to lack of space, we have been informed that spectators will not be allowed to participate," wrote the Canadian Embassy on its social networks.
However, nothing prevented about fifteen of its nationals from mingling with the crowd.
"Celebration day"
"It's a day of celebration," rejoiced Adnan Zakaria, one of the 20,000 Moroccans in Qatar, wearing his team jersey and his country's flag on his shoulders.
Moroccan supporters film their national flag, on March 30, 2022 in Doha, hoisted during a ceremony celebrating the qualification, the day before, of their team as well as 8 others, for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar (November 21 - 18 December) KARIM JAAFAR AFP
"There are only 250 Senegalese here but our people will come from Senegal and other Gulf countries. People will hear us when the tournament starts," promised ambassador Mouhamed Habibou Diallo.
"It gives reality to the World Cup," also welcomed Nasser Al Khater, director of the organizing committee.
"It's exhilarating. There's a lot of excitement, a little apprehension too, but that's normal."
Qatar expects more than 1.2 million people to travel to the gas-rich Gulf emirate for the first World Cup hosted in an Arab country.
More than 800,000 tickets were purchased during the first phase of sales between January 19 and February 8, Fifa announced on Wednesday, with the ten countries most in demand being Qatar, the United States, England, Mexico , the United Arab Emirates, Germany, India, Brazil, Argentina and Saudi Arabia.
Lusail Stadium, November 22, 2021, north of Doha, which will host the FIFA World Cup final, December 18, 2022 - Qatar's Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy/AFP/Archives
Seventeen million tickets had been requested, according to Fifa, but there will only be a little more than two million available.
beautiful posters
The next sales phase will open on April 5 at 11 a.m. French time and will allow you to make your choices according to the schedule of matches established by the draw.
If the 27 nations already qualified (out of 32) hold their breath before knowing in which of the eight groups of four they will land, they discovered on Wednesday the ball they will use.
Dominantly white with blue and red stripes highlighted with gold, with the Adidas logo and baptized Al Rihla (the journey), it "has the fastest trajectories ever recorded (and) will contribute to the rhythm and quality of the matches", promises the FIFA.
Al Rihla ("the journey"), name of the official ball for the FIFA World Cup to be held in Qatar (November 21-December 18, 2022) and the names of previous balls Valentin RAKOVSKY AFP
Friday's ceremony, preceded by a Congress of the governing body of world football on Thursday, promises great displays from the first round, with several major nations (Netherlands, Germany, Croatia) out of the N.1 hat seeded ones.
Brazil and Argentina, on the other hand, are part of it, alongside France, England, Belgium, Portugal, Spain... and Qatar, which is playing its first World Cup. .
The French celebrate their title of world champions, around their captain and goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, after winning the final, 4-2 against Croatia, on July 15, 2018 in Moscow FRANCK FIFE AFP / Archives
Three participants will still be missing: two winners of upcoming intercontinental play-offs, as well as a European qualifier in the draw part of Ukraine, whose meetings have been postponed due to the Russian invasion.
Russia was excluded.
© 2022 AFP