By Coen Lammers
Analysis - 'Expect Amazing'. That was the slogan the Emirate of Qatar used to win hosting rights for the FIFA World Cup in 2022, but what 'amazing' will look like may be different from what most fans may expect.
Photo: Photosport / Tom Kirkwood
FIFA's decision in 2010 to award the second Asian World Cup to the tiny, uber-rich Gulf state drew criticism around from around the globe.
A decade on, the discussions continue over the way the bid was won and about the employment conditions for foreign workers but the reality is, in five months the footballing world will arrive for the biggest sporting extravaganza.
Teams and fans have wondered what a World Cup would look like in a desert country and away from the traditional power houses of the game in Europe and South America, so this week's intercontinental play-off matches were a perfect opportunity to get a taster.
The play-off games were relatively small in scale with only four teams involved and a limited number of fans able to make the trip from New Zealand, Australia, Costa Rica and Peru, but for the organisers it was perfect opportunity test its systems and iron out any issues before a million supporters are expected to cheer on 32 teams.
One of the major talking points has been around the heat, which forced FIFA to move the World Cup from its traditional June-July window to November-December which has completely disrupted football calendars around the world.
This week the temperature nudged a stifling 50 degrees on several days but the revolutionary, state-of-the-art air conditioning systems are keeping the stadiums comfortably cool, and at pitch level even chilly.
The oil rich Emirate has spent an eye watering amount on its eight new stadiums that can compete with the best arenas around the world. The designs, like most buildings in the country, are memorable and original, but what this tiny peninsula of 2.5 million people will do with all these stadiums post world cup remains unclear.
At least one of the venues, the 974 Stadium, is showcased as a sustainability success story as it is designed around 974 containers, and after the World Cup will be deconstructed, packed up in the containers and shipped off to Mexico for the 2026 World Cup.
The two play-off matches this week were promising dress rehearsals with most fans using the brand new Doha metro and enjoying their experience in the Ahmed Bin Ali Stadium.
Overzealous security officials once again seem to be the overriding frustration for fans and journalists alike, but hopefully the Qatari Supreme Authority running the event will finetune that aspect, just as the Russians did four years ago after the Confederation Cup test event.
Many New Zealand officials working on next year's FIFA Women's World Cup have already experienced that FIFA knows what it wants to make an event run smoothly and most countries are eager to please their visitors and make the necessary accommodations.
How much the Qatari leadership will be willing to accommodate different cultures and values, remains to be seen. That is the luxury afforded of having more money than you can spend.
Having a few beers is an integral part of the football experience in most countries, but alcohol consumption is frowned upon in the Islamic nation. Expats can purchase alcohol with special permits, and most hotels have a bar tucked away in a dark corner, but how FIFA and Qatar will deal with hundreds of thousands of thirsty Europeans and South Americans is still not clear. One Danish journalist attending the New Zealand match was very blunt: The only thing her readers wanted to know was where they could get a drink.
The FIFA World Cup is usually a sumptuous cocktail of nationalities blended by the common love of the beautiful game, but it will be fascinating to see how the Qatari hosts will respond to the behaviour of footballing mobs that while accepted in other countries, may be highly offensive to local authorities or security officials.
Whatever way that clash of cultures plays out, the 2022 World Cup will offer a unique opportunity to showcase ancient Arabic culture to a global audience that may only have negative stigmas attached to the Middle East.
The proximity of the eight venues will also create the unique logistics of having all fans in one city for the first time in the 92-year history of the tournament and they will be able to attend multiple matches in one day.
Whatever your opinion may be of the World Cup coming to Qatar, it will create a new and memorable chapter in the colourful history of the Mundial.
FIFA was criticised when it first took the event away from its traditional cycle between Europe and South America in 1994, but the tournament in the United States had more spectators than any previous World Cup. Some people were scratching their heads when the cup ventured to Japan and South Korea in 2002 or South Africa in 2010 but on both occasions, these football mad nations and continents created a whole new way of celebrating the World Cup.
In 2014, corruption and lack of organisation were set to torpedo the World Cup in Brazil, and in 2018 many fans were nervous about travelling to Russia, but in both editions set new benchmarks for a successful FIFA World Cup.
Qatar will no doubt be different than previous events and judging by those experiences that could in fact be a good thing.
Those of us lucky enough to have attended the tournament in multiple continents can tell you that the FIFA World Cup simply is bigger than any country or any culture. What happens on the field is the main course, while the host country mainly provides the table setting and their own special sauce to spice up whatever is being served.
*Coen Lammers has covered five FIFA World Cups since 1998 in three different continents,.
