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Qatar shelled out $200 bln on arrangements for FIFA World Cup, says envoy

The FIFA World Cup will take place from November 21 to December 18, 2022, in five cities and eight stadiums

Al Janoub Stadium in Doha AP Photo/Hassan Ammar

Al Janoub Stadium in Doha

© AP Photo/Hassan Ammar

MOSCOW, October 7. /TASS/. Qatar’s preliminary expenses for the 2022 FIFA World Cup has come to roughly $200 bln, the country’s Ambassador to Russia, Sheikh Ahmed bin Nasser bin Jassim Al Thani, told TASS on Thursday.

The FIFA World Cup will take place from November 21 to December 18, 2022, in five cities and eight stadiums.

"Currently, our country has spent about $200 bln on organizing the tournament," the envoy said.

"We hope that [our country] will be able to arrange a world championship that the entire globe will be excited about. We want Qatar to always be an advanced state, a kind of locomotive serving as a role model in every way. We have a very extensive interaction with Russia in this direction. We also watched how Russia organized the 2018 World Cup, it was wonderful and brilliant, so we look forward to exchanging this experience with Russia," Al Thani noted.

Stadiums in Qatar

Fatma Al Nuaimi, the Communications Executive Director at the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy of the World Cup, stated that the budget for the construction of stadiums, training grounds, team bases, and establishing services for fans amounted to $6.5 bln, which was comparable to previous world championships and the Olympic Games.

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"Meanwhile, the World Cup is a part of the Qatar National Vision 2030, a broader government strategy promoting the intensive development of urban and national facilities and industry, in addition to education and healthcare systems," Al Nuaimi said. "The $200-bln figure, often associated with the World Cup, is actually part of this ambitious strategy for Qatar’s national development and modernization. Most of these large-scale infrastructure projects, which will be used by teams and fans in 2022, such as new roads, a subway, an airport, hotels and other tourist facilities were planned even before we obtained the right to host the World Cup. These projects would have been implemented anyway, however, the football championship has certainly accelerated all these developments so that the country can host the 1.5 mln fans that we expect in 2022."

"We are sure that everyone who visits Qatar in 2022 will be delighted. Our new facilities and services will provide an excellent experience for teams and fans as well as a fundamental legacy for Qatar after 2022." Al Nuaimi mentioned.

The Khalifa International Stadium in Qatar’s Al Ryyan, built in 1975, was completely renovated in 2017, being the first of the eight World Cup stadiums to open. The first arena to be built from scratch was the Al Janoub Stadium, which opened in May 2019, the Education City and Ahmad bin Ali stadiums opened the following year. Currently, six arenas are ready for the tournament, the construction of the remaining two stadiums will be completed by late 2021.

By the start of the championship, the city of Lusail will be also built. Here, at the eponymous stadium for 80,000 spectators, the final of the World Cup will take place.

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