DOHA -

Their faces smile while chanting expressions of welcome and offering help, a recurring scene that you encounter whenever you encounter a volunteer in the Arab World Cup, which is hosted by Qatar until the 18th of this month.

They have no common denominators, as they are of different nationalities and cultures, but the love of volunteering brought them together on the green grass in the stadiums, and linked them to each other, as if they belonged to one family.

A large family of more than 5,000 male and female volunteers in the Arab World Cup, representing 92 countries from all over the world, were chosen out of 55,000 applications, and two thousand of them got the opportunity to participate in the celebration of the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy on International Volunteer Day.

Volunteers played a remarkable role in the success of organizing local and international tournaments in Qatar (Al-Jazeera)

Aisha's Journey

Indian Aisha Manal narrates her journey with volunteer work in Qatar, saying, "My volunteering journey began 10 years ago during the Arab Games, and at that time I wanted to take a new experience."

Aisha - to Al Jazeera Net - says that volunteer work has many meanings, enhances a sense of pride and belonging, develops skills and creates new friendships and acquaintances in all parts of the world, as it is a large family meeting.

Aisha holds a university degree in engineering, and works in the field of communications and marketing at the Qatar Foundation (QATAR FOUNDATION), and continued, "I wanted to take advantage of my spare time to give back to the State of Qatar, which gave us so much, and to be part of the success of this event."

Aisha - a mother of two daughters who has lived with her family in Doha for 20 years - volunteered in many sporting and other events, including the world championships for handball, boxing and athletics.

Thousands of volunteers in the tournament work like a beehive around the clock, wherever you look you see them spread out in large and organized, at the entrances to the stadiums and all facilities, and you can simply ask them anything you need, and they quickly respond.

Aisha believes that there are many meanings of volunteering (Al-Jazeera)

Passion for football

In turn, the Egyptian volunteer in the tournament, Mahmoud Mostafa, says, "My passion for football prompted me to become a volunteer, and like all Egyptians, the passion for sports runs in my blood. I love all sports and I particularly like playing football."

Mahmoud added that he was happy with this experience, which gave him confidence in himself, and made him make friends with people of different nationalities and cultures.

He told Al Jazeera Net that "the importance of volunteering lies in the individual's contribution to making a positive change in society, which constantly pushes me to seize any opportunity in the field of volunteering, as I have previously participated in more than one event."

He adds that volunteering has brought him many gains, new skills and experiences in many fields, and the experience of participating in the Arab World Cup will truly benefit him when he volunteers in the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

The feeling of giving back to Qatar was a recurring topic in the conversations of the volunteers. Mustafa stressed that he considers his volunteering as a way to repay the debt to the Qatari community that has embraced it on its land for years, and to provide effort and time to serve it.

And you can distinguish the volunteers in the Arab Championship through their uniform, which changes color according to the task assigned to the volunteer.

The volunteer program in the Arab World Cup includes 5,000 volunteers from 92 countries (Al-Jazeera)

10 thousand kilometers

As for the Nigerian, Philo Adama, who traveled about 10,000 kilometers to join the volunteers in Qatar, she sees that her experience in the field so far is rich by all accounts, as it provided her with an opportunity to get to know people of different affiliations and cultures.

Philo says - to Al Jazeera Net - that her volunteering in the Arab World Cup is her first experience with "FIFA", and it gave her the opportunity to learn about the scenes of organizing major sporting tournaments and events, and also opened new horizons for her to learn closely about the country that will host the 2022 World Cup.

5,000 volunteers are participating in the Arab World Cup, including 1,100 female volunteers, and 250 international volunteers from 92 countries. The strategy adopted by the organizing committee aims to provide the tournament with volunteers of different nationalities and cultures, to support the organization of this huge football event, as well as build a database of qualified volunteers. Those who are able to provide support to Qatar during the hosting of the 2022 World Cup.

The volunteers played a remarkable role in the success of Qatar’s organization of local and international tournaments, in addition to their participation in the inauguration of the Qatar World Cup stadium celebrations, a Qatari vision that seeks to benefit from the expertise and skills of 20,000 volunteers expected to be received during the World Cup.