With FIFA as its main organizer, the Arab Nations Cup took place from November 30th to December 18th, 2021 in Doha. The competition has been occurring on a random basis since 1963.
16 teams from the best Arab countries competed for 3 weeks. The host country finished 3rd and Algeria won the trophy against its neighbor Tunisia.
But more importantly, the event served as a full-scale rehearsal for the FIFA 2022 World Cup. Indeed, the tournament took place in the same calendar frame that the World Cup is scheduled next year, although the latter will of course last longer (it will begin 9 days earlier) due to the number of teams involved (32 for the World Cup vs. 16 for the Arab Cup of Nations). The final was held on a Qatar bank holiday on December 18, which will also be the case in 2022. This competition was above all an opportunity to test the infrastructure that will be used next year: 6 stadiums out of the 8 venues of the World Cup were visited: Ras Abu Aboud Stadium (Stadium 974), Al Thumama Stadium, Education City Stadium, Al Bayt Stadium, Al Janoub Stadium, Al Rayyan Stadium; while the roads, the subway, the hotels, etc. were similarly challenged. On top of this, FIFA took advantage of the event to put to the test numerous broadcasting, refereeing and regulation systems which will be deployed for 2022.
It is too early to draw a conclusion on the country’s preparation. While the sports hosting infrastructure seems to be in place, the hosting constraints (hotels, transport) and logistics (volunteers, accreditation management, traffic plan) still represent a huge challenge for the small Gulf country.
VPI accompanied many clients during this event, sometimes to cover the event but mostly to discover the Qatari context after 18 months of confinement. Our team has never stopped working in the field and is able to assist professionals in planning the organization of the World Cup, whether it be for accommodation or transport issues.
