The organizers of the Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup hope that 1.2 million visitors will come to the country, hosting them in its hotel chain and through other "innovative and temporary" solutions, according to Fatima Al-Nuaimi, executive director of the Communications Department of the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy.
Al-Nuaimi said - in an interview with Agence France-Presse - "We hope that during the World Cup this number of visitors will attend. They will not be at the same time in the country, as this event extends over a period of 28 days."
Qatar will host the first World Cup in the Middle East from November 21 to December 18, 2022.
On how to predict this number, Al-Nuaimi said, "There is more than one element, such as data from previous versions of the World Cup, the geographical location of Qatar near many countries, and the arrival of the official carrier, Qatar Airways, to 190 direct destinations, which will produce Fifa (International Football Association) markets. A new audience.
On how to host this number of visitors, Al Nuaimi said that in addition to hotels, "we thought of innovative and temporary solutions, such as huge floating boats, and desert Arab-style fan villages that give a different experience and provide a large number of rented rooms in hotels."
She revealed that "full housing plans will be available soon for fans who usually start thinking about housing after starting to issue tickets in early 2022."
She added that the "Be the Host" initiative, which opens the doors of Qataris and foreign residents to visitors, "is an opportunity for fans to learn about the country's culture. We are a hospitable people. It will be applied in the World Cup and the Arab Cup as well."
She referred to measures to facilitate the arrival of fans, so that the fan ID (Fan ID) is a visa to enter the country.
Organizers stress that fans will have a rare opportunity to watch more than one match in one day, as the shortest distance between two stadiums is 5 km, and the farthest is 55 km, all of which are connected to the metro.
Liquor in specific places
After a controversy arose about the provision of alcohol in the country during the World Cup due to the conservative traditions in the country, Al-Nuaimi said that they will be in specific places, "drinks are not part of the Qatari culture, but they are a requirement of the tournament, and they will be in specific places and with prior coordination between the host country and FIFA."
While the capital, Doha, appears to be a building workshop based on various levels, Al-Nuaimi revealed the state's readiness 13 months before hosting, explaining that "98% of the construction is ready, and at the end of this year all stadiums will be complete. This is the first World Cup tournament in the history of hosting. The World Cup stadiums will be ready a year ago.”
Five stadiums have been inaugurated so far, while the sixth "Al-Bayt" stadium has been completed and will be launched at the opening ceremony of the Arab Cup. The Ras Bouaboud and Lusail stadiums, which will host the World Cup final with a capacity of 85,000 spectators, remain to be completed.
Al-Naimi touched on the upcoming Arab Cup, which will be held from November 30, with the participation of 16 teams in 6 World Cup stadiums, revealing that "there will be no health bubble system. Participants in the Arab Cup will be vaccinated by 90%, except for those who have been infected with the virus." in the past nine months."
Fatima Al-Naimi stressed the cooling technology in the stadiums, which is adopted in 7 of the eight stadiums, with the exception of Ras Abu Aboud, which will be completely dismantled after the World Cup, explaining, "It is true that the tournament has moved to the winter, but this does not mean that we will not follow through on our commitments. The cooling technology will benefit the stadiums in the area that Similar to our climate, by dropping the temperature to 18 degrees Celsius, these stadiums can be used all year round.”