Qatar continues to stage a dazzling FIFA World Cup, making the entire Middle East and the Arab world proud and drawing hundreds of thousands of football fans and tourists from across the globe. With 56 matches already played and now only eight teams left in the competition, the tournament has been hailed as the best group stage ever with dramatic matches across all eight groups and some shock results sending the likes of Germany and Belgium home early. With another upset on Tuesday seeing former champions Spain eliminated and Morocco through to the quarterfinals for the first time, the pundits are wondering if this is the most unpredictable World Cup in recent history.
This World Cup has also witnessed record-breaking attendance and television figures across the world. For the first time in FIFA World Cup history, teams from all continents were represented in the last 16 at Qatar 2022. In another first, this World Cup also featured three nations from the Asian Football Confederation in the pre-quarterfinal knock-out stage. It is also the second World Cup to have two African teams in the pre-quarterfinals.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino has said that the World Cup has had over two billion viewers globally, a figure which could rise to five billion by the time the new world champions are crowned at Lusail Stadium on December 18. The FIFA President said figures published at the end of the group stage showed a cumulative attendance of 2.45 million for the first 48 games, with an average of over 51,000 spectators at each game.
Off the pitch too, the World Cup has been a huge success with over two million people celebrating the occasion in the streets and dozens of public places across Qatar. Apart from the main FIFA Fan Festival and fan attractions along the Doha Corniche, other public places like Msheireb Downtown Doha, Souq Waqif, several locations in Lusail, The Pearl Island and Education City have been drawing huge numbers of fans and tourists daily.
Qatar has also moved to ease entry requirements for people from the GCC. Nationals and residents of the GCC states can now enter Qatar without the need to register at Hayya platform.
However, fans wishing to attend a match in stadium still need to register at the Hayya platform. Similarly, people entering Qatar through the land crossing can travel in their own cars from December 8, provided they obtain a permit through the Ministry of Interior website.
