One of the World Cup stadiums in Qatar is named after the Persian Gulf country’s foreign dialing code – 974 – and another is called “Education City”. These are names that sound slightly like they have ties to football, and after the tournament, possibly not anymore.
Qatar has built seven of its 8 luxurious World Cup stadiums and extensively renovated another. The smallest World Cup host country since Switzerland in 1954, Qatar has a population of 2. 6 million, with just 360,000 Qatari citizens and a national league.
It is doubtful that he will want so many giant stadiums after the tournament, especially after the last 3 World Cups, in South Africa, Brazil and Russia, have exposed several stadiums without long-term use.
At least Stadium 974 in Ras Abu Aboud will not be a white elephant as it will disappear. The 40,000-seat stadium on Doha’s east port side was made with recycled shipping boxes, 974 of them. The removable and energy-efficient stadium will give way to an advertising progression along the promenade.
But many stadiums will no longer host football beyond this tournament and next summer’s Asian Cup, for which Qatar secured hosting rights after host China pulled out over citing the COVID-19 pandemic.
Only the two most sensible teams in the Qatar Stars League, Al Rayyan and Al Wakrah, will play in their dazzling World Cup stadiums.
Most World Cup venues will see their capacity reduced from 40,000 to 20,000 after the tournament as part of a sustainability campaign. Education City is thirteen kilometers (8 miles) from Doha. The part of the seats will pass and the headquarters will be used. through 8,000 fellows at nine universities and 11 schools.
What about the extra 20,000 seats?
“(They) will be introduced to countries that want gaming infrastructure,” Ali Al Dosari, the stadium’s services manager, said in a statement. “This will promote football culture and even more love for the game around the world. “
Qatar has pledged to give 170,000 seats to the countries.
With its golden façade and 80,000-seat capacity, Qatar’s glittering Lusail Stadium hosts 10 matches in addition to the final. It’s only 20 kilometers (12. 2 miles) from Doha, but no club will call this boat glittering. In a logic of sustainable development, its long-term is that of a network of crossroads with homes, shops, schools, cafes and medical clinics. The top point will be an external earthwork for the new houses.
A similar fate awaits the tent-shaped Al Bayt Stadium in the city of Al Khor, a 60,000-seat stadium that will host the opening match between Qatar and Ecuador on Nov. 20 and shortly after a highly anticipated clash between England and the United States.
The plan is that the top point will have to be removed after the tournament, which will allow a new return to seat service. A five-star hotel and grocery shopping center, and a sports center will be incorporated into the stadium building. The medical hospital will be opened.
Good use of the existing infrastructure, no doubt, but leaving a little behind a football legacy. For example, the other 4 stadiums built for the 2016 European Championship in France (Lyon, Lille, Bordeaux and Nice) are used through those club groups for a long time. -base term.
Al Thumama Stadium is another 40,000-seat stadium near central Doha that will be cut in half. The stadium will be used for football and other sporting events, it is not yet clear which ones. A sports clinic and a hotel will be opened on site.
KEEP PLAYING
The 40,000-capacity Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium, 20 kilometers (12. 2 miles) west of Doha in um Al Afaei, hosts Al Rayyan in the 12-team QSL; and the second-tier Al-Kharitiyath Sports Club.
Meanwhile, the 40,000-capacity Al Janoub Stadium is where France will begin defending its name against Australia on Nov. 22.
Al Wakrah will continue to play matches here in the QSL after the tournament with a reduced capacity of 20,000, a low attendance for a top-tier team in the major European and South American leagues.
The Khalifa International Stadium, near the centre of Doha, dates back to 1976 and has been completely renovated to accommodate 40,000 fans. The heavily used stadium has hosted the Persian Gulf Cup, the FIFA Club World Cup and the World Athletics Championship.
“Khalifa Stadium will continue to host major matches and tournaments,” said stadium director Ahmad Al Thani.
A recent written request from The Associated Press for further comment on the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Bequest was denied.
SC general secretary Hassan Al Thawadi has said in the past that stadiums meet all sustainability criteria.
“We have recycled and reused where possible and implemented a wide diversity of power and water solutions,” he said in a stadium document. “We have used sustainably sourced fabrics and implemented state-of-the-art legacy plans to make sure our tournament leaves no elephant. “
So while football’s legacy after the World Cup is likely to be small, cash-rich Qatar is unlikely to face monetary and logistical turmoil as other nations have faced after abusing public resources.
EXPENSIVE ELEPHANTS
The Montreal Olympic Stadium, which hosted the 1976 Olympic Games, known as a famous white elephant that took 30 years to bear fruit.
Former World Cup hosts are still paying.
After South Africa spent $1. 1 of the bill on its 10 stadiums for the 2010 tournament, some of which were new, many were left unused or underutilized. This proved to be very costly for the municipalities that footed the bill and ended up losing taxpayers’ money.
The $600 million Cape Town Stadium presented impressive prospects for Table Mountain, but for a considerable price. It would have charged taxpayers about $3. 5 million a year, but legacy issues were partially resolved by sharing with the city’s Stormers rugby team and foreign rugby matches. .
Brazil spent nearly $4 billion to build and renovate sites in 2014. Four cities in Brazil ended up with underutilized stadiums like the $550 million Mane Garrincha in Brasilia, which even received an adjustment with just 400 spectators. The Arena Pernambuco in Recife, with a capacity of 46,000 seats, does have equipment.
Russia’s $10. 8 billion World Cup prize money has been inflated through loss-making stadiums with superior annual maintenance. Of the 12 stadiums in 2018, only 8 host high-level matches, with tens of thousands of empty seats, with the exception of Zenit St. Petersburg and Spartak Moscow stadiums.
HUMAN COST
Qatar has been harshly criticized for the physical and contractual conditions of workers, mainly from South Asia, needed to build stadiums, metro lines, roads and hotels.
It is unclear the exact number of migrant workers who have died or been injured running too hot in projects since FIFA chose Qatar to host the World Cup in December 2010. Final data was either difficult to determine or not published by authorities.
Qatar has established a fund for staff that, since 2020, has paid $164 million in reimbursements to more than 36,000 employees in 17 other countries, Human Rights Watch said in August, presenting government data.
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AP editors James Ellingworth in Düsseldorf and Gerald Imray in Johannesburg contributed to this report.
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