Read on to learn some interesting facts about the FIFA 2022 World Cup preparations.

28 Days

The tournament will take place over 28 days, kicking off on November 21, 2022, with the final being held on December 18, 2022, the Qatar National Day.

Eight Stadiums

Khalifa International Stadium was inaugurated following an extensive redevelopment on May 19, 2017. Al Janoub Stadium was inaugurated on May 16, 2019, when it hosted the Amir Cup final. Al Janoub Stadium is the first Qatar 2022 venue to be built from scratch. Education City Stadium became the third tournament-ready venue for 2022 following a digital launch in June 2020. The stadium’s opening was dedicated to frontline workers of the coronavirus pandemic. Two more stadiums – Al Rayyan Stadium and Al Bayt Stadium – are set to be completed this year. Main works on the remaining three stadiums – Al Thumama Stadium, Ras Abu Aboud Stadium and Lusail Stadium – will be completed in 2021.

Team Base Camps

In addition, 21 Team Base Camps have been approved and included in the first version of the brochure presented to the teams playing the qualifiers. Qatar remains on track to deliver the remaining number of required training sites well ahead of the tournament. Each training site consists of two pitches and an ancillary building. Some of the sites have already been utilised during two major sporting events in 2019 – the 24th Arabian Gulf Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup.

Sustainability

In 2020, the SC and FIFA launched the first-ever joint Sustainability Strategy and Policy. The policy defined five sustainability commitments according to five pillars: human, social, economic, environmental and governance. Qatar is committed to delivering the most sustainable sporting event in history in 2022. One aspect of the plan is to deliver a carbon neutral tournament. Water conservation, waste management, carbon management, renewable energy, environmental protection, urban connectivity, biodiversity and urban ecology are just a few of the means being used in order to achieve this goal. The SC also signed an agreement with the Gulf Organisation for Research & Development (GORD) in 2019 to support the delivery of a carbon-neutral tournament in 2022. Under the agreement, the Global Carbon Trust (GCT), part of GORD, will develop assessment standards to measure carbon reduction, work with organisations across Qatar and the region to implement carbon reduction projects, and issue carbon credits which offset emissions related to Qatar 2022. Tournament sites are designed, constructed and operated to limit environmental impacts – in line with the requirements of the Global Sustainability Assessment System (GSAS). A total of nine GSAS certifications have been awarded across three stadiums to date

Tree & Turf Nursery

World class stadiums need world class turf. In line with this goal, the SC developed a nursery to grow the required turf for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and promote environmental sustainability in Qatar. The SC Tree & Turf Nursery covers an area of 880,000m2 with 16,000 trees, 679,000 shrubs and 425,000m2 of turf. The Turf Nursery is located within Aspire Zone in Doha and comprises 30,000m2 of land where 12 different species of grass are being tested over a sixyear period. The facilities were specially constructed by AZF and the SC and include an irrigation trial area and an on-site lab to analyse samples. The grass grown at the facility will inform the choice of FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 football pitches. The turf being grown at the nursery is unique and has been developed in Qatar specifically to withstand both the country’s climate year-round.

Lusail Stadium

The 80,000-capacity Lusail Stadium will be the biggest tournament venue and will host the final in 2022.

$6.5 billion

The total budget for the stadiums and training sites Qatar is constructing.

18°C to 24°C

The average temperature expected during the tournament – meaning perfect conditions for players and fans.

Al Bayt Stadium

The 60,000-capacity Al Bayt Stadium will host the opening match of Qatar 2022.

Accommodation

Fans will have a variety of accommodation options, including hotels, apartments, fan villages and floating hotels (cruise ships). Thanks to the compact nature of the tournament, fans, players and officials will only need to stay in one place throughout the tournament.

Getting around

Fans will arrive at the state-of the-art Hamad International Airport, which will have an annual capacity of 53 million by 2022. Getting around will be easy thanks to public transport, notably the new metro system, which was successfully utilised by fans during the FIFA Club World Cup in 2019. Seven out of eight venues are either directly connected or in close proximity to a metro station, with single journey prices being QR3 ($0.82).

Fan ID

Following the success of the Fan ID during Russia 2018, Qatar is working on a similar solution for fans during 2022.

Visa-free entry

Nationals from a total of 80 countries can take advantage of visa-free entry into Qatar.

Fans

We’re expecting approximately 1.5 million fans to visit Qatar during the tournament.

Safety

Qatar benefits from a low crime rate and is consistently ranked as one of the safest countries in the world. Qatar is working with international experts such as INTERPOL, the Council of Europe, the UK Home Office, FBI, French Gendarmerie and other partners to ensure the safety and security of visitors in 2022.

Central location

Hamad International Airport is a major transport hub and a vital link between the Americas, Europe and Asia. The extensive Qatar Airways network means passengers can fly directly to Doha from more than 160 destinations.

TV times

More than three billion fans across Asia and Europe will benefit from prime time viewing during the tournament thanks to convenient kick-off times.

Workers’ Welfare

The health and well-being of our workers is our top priority. There are currently about 18,700 workers on Qatar’s FIFA World Cup sites. The SC’s Worker Welfare Standards cover ethical recruitment, accommodation and working conditions. Regular audits support compliance, while contractors in breach of the standards are subject to enforcement measures, including contract termination and blacklisting. The SC has implemented a vast range of reforms to benefit workers, including regular site inspections and audits, the implementation of forums to allow grievances to be heard and rectified – plus a number of innovative projects related to nutrition, well-being and health and safety. In addition, the SC has worked with contractors to repay more than $30.4 million to workers who were forced to pay illegal recruitment fees in their home countries – irrespective of whether there is a paper trail or not.

Football in Qatar

  • Qatar are the reigning champions of Asia after winning the 2019 AFC Asian Cup. Qatar beat 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers Saudi Arabia, the Korea Republic and Japan on route to winning the tournament in the UAE.
  • Other honours for the national team include the gold medal at the 2006 Asian Games, three Arabian Gulf Cup titles and one West Asian Football Federation championship.
  • Qatar also took part in the 2019 Copa America in Brazil, and will take part in the next edition – to be held in Colombia and Argentina in 2021.
  • Qatar finished as runners-up in the 1981 FIFA World Youth Championship and reached the quarter-finals of the Olympic Games in 1992. More recently, Qatar finished third at the 2018 U23 AFC Asian Cup and won the 2014 U19 AFC Asian Cup. Qatar also qualified for the 2019 FIFA U20 World Cup in Poland.
  • The 12-team Qatar Stars League is the top professional league in Qatar. World Cup winner Xavi Hernandez currently coaches reigning champions Al Sadd after captaining the team for three seasons. Former Barcelona star Samuel Eto’o and Dutch legend Wesley Sneijder also played in the league last season.
  • Qatari side Al Sadd has won the AFC Champions League twice, in 1989 and 2011.

Source : Gulf Times

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