'We've planned for everything' - Qatar focusing on fan experience for the 2022 World Cup, says Fatma Al Nuaimi

The 2022 World Cup, set to be held in Qatar, could very well be the first major global sporting event since the Covid-19 pandemic to be held with no restrictions on presence of fans. After the pandemic disrupted the sporting schedule in 2020, numerous events were cancelled or postponed like the Euro 2020 and the Tokyo Olympics. 

They were held this year but with restrictions. While the Euro 2020 only had limited fans at each stadium, the Tokyo Olympics was held without the presence of any. Of course, fans have been allowed into Premier League games and other European league matches but Qatar 2022 is expected to be a celebration of return to normalcy, or at least a semblance of what it was before Covid-19. 

Fatma Al Nuaimi, Executive Communications Director for the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy (SC), has touched upon the same while highlighting Qatar's commitment to deliver an amazing World Cup for the fans. In fact, 'Deliver Amazing' is a tagline for the Qatar 2022 and Al Nuaimi says the Middle-East nation is leaving no stone unturned in realising the meaning of it. 

"We are going to make sure we deliver an amazing experience to every type of fan. We are looking at everyone, people who will be coming to the tournament and people who will view the tournament digitally. We have mapped everything and we have planned for everything," she told Goal.

"I just wanted to emphasize on health, safety and security. It was always a priority for us. Within the circumstances of the world and Covid-19, we are going to make this a priority and this is where our fan experience will revolve around."

One of the most revelling experiences for fans going to World Cups will be the fan zones and areas where you celebrate matches of your favourite teams with fervour. Al Nuaimi was eager to point out that such fan zones and entertainment options for the fans will be available during the 2022 World Cup. The endeavour from Qatar is to ensure the fans do not miss out on the festivities and the Qatari cultural experience. 

"There will be fan fests like every World Cup which have fan fests where people can come and watch a football match and at the same time join the festivities of the World Cup. There will be some cultural festivities across Qatar. We are working with the cultural sector. For fans to actually celebrate with music and food. This will be a part of the experience. There is a lot of planning that is happening," she stated. 

And Al Nuaimi also stressed on how Qatar planned to 'Deliver Amazing' to fans from all sorts of backgrounds, financially, culturally and socially. Qatar have taken steps to ensure accommodation and entertainment facilities for all sections of fans are available when the World Cup starts in November 2022. From five-star hotels to service apartments to unconventional stay options, Qatar are exploring all possibilities.

"We will be catering to every fan preference. Sometimes there are misconceptions that Qatar only has five-star or luxury hotels but fans will find different types of accommodation. In the upcoming period, we are actually going to announce more details about the accommodation solutions for the fans. We have mentioned this in the past that we are looking at turning cruise ships into hotels. People might not always stay in a hotel and stay in a service apartment or rent a place in Qatar.

"We are trying, as a part of the experience, to facilitate the fans to find these locations and they can find them at affordable prices. From five-star and three-star hotels to cruise ships. All these will be temporary solutions as we don't want to, from a legacy perspective, we don't want to build for the demand.

"We don't want to end up having a lot of real estate locations that might not be usable beyond the tournament. So for us having these desert camps, cruise ships at reasonable prices. We are going to roll out a full-fledged communication plan specifically to address this to fans at the right time."

She also hopes that fans not only enjoy the atmosphere and revel in a World Cup but also take a piece of Qatar back home via the memories from the World Cup.

"From a personal experience, I have been to Russia for the 2018 World Cup and Brazil for the 2014 World Cup. This is where you can make the most of the memories. You watch the games in beautiful stadiums, but the memories you take away is what have you done in that country, seeing the soul of the country itself and this is what we are trying to give the people - a beautiful memory and we are working closely with the tourism department and cultural institutions of Qatar to ensure that."