THE COUNTDOWN BEGINS
Excitement is building ahead of the FIFA World Cup which kicks off in Qatar later this year. If the draw for the tournament is anything to go by, Doha will be giddy with anticipation by the time the first ball is kicked in the city’s brand new Al Thumama Stadium on Monday 21st November.
The world’s press converged on the capital for the draw that saw Qatar placed in Group A alongside Ecuador, Senegal and the Netherlands. Football fans also flocked to Doha on April 1st to bear witness to the star-studded event and catch a glimpse of their sporting heroes including Germany’s Lothar Matthaus and Brazilian legend, Cafu.
Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani welcomed guests to the Final Draw ceremony before handing over to those with the envied responsibility of conducting the draw.
But despite the hype around both the draw and the tournament itself, there is still much controversy surrounding Qatar’s successful Word Cup bid.
The state has been criticized for its treatment of the thousands of migrant labourers employed to work on stadia and infrastructure with accusations of withheld wages, confiscated passports and squalid living conditions.
Allegations of bribery, whilst unfounded, continue to blight the project as people speculate how Qatar, with no record of ever qualifying for the World Cup and with little footballing history, managed to beat competition from South Korea, Australia, Japan and the United States. Qatar is also the smallest nation (by area) ever to have been awarded a FIFA World Cup giving cynics another reason to doubt the integrity of the bid.
Something else to raise concerns was Qatar’s desert climate which resulted in the tournament, usually held in June and July, being moved to November and December. This was met with disapproval from the top European leagues set to suffer major disruption as a consequence of the change. The English Premier League, for example, will be suspended mid-season with no matches played between 13th November and 26th December.
The recently announced fixture list also raised a few eyebrows. In a break from tradition, the opening match will not involve the host nation who are scheduled instead to take on Ecuador in the third match of the day, kicking off at 7pm local time. Bizarrely, Senegal and the Netherlands have the pleasure of kick-starting the tournament at 1pm, followed by England and Iran at 4pm.
Undeterred, Qatar’s foreign minister, Khalid al-Attiyah, insists that this year’s World Cup will be ‘the best World Cup ever’. Not surprising when the estimated cost of the project is placed at around $220bn.
Following the country’s heavy investment, visitors are promised brand new stadia with solar-powered cooling technology as well as luxurious new hotels. The efficient Doha Expressway will provide vital transport links and the recently extended Hamad international Airport will cater to the 1.2 million people expected to descend on the small Gulf state.
With the shining jewel of Qatar ready to welcome the world, it promises to be a memorable tournament. So, as the countdown begins to the world’s greatest football competition, it’s time to show a red card to criticism, doubts and allegations. This is the first World Cup to be held in the Arab world and that in itself is something to celebrate.
