A general view during the opening ceremony of FIFA Arab Cup Qatar 2021 at Al Bayt Stadium on November 30.
Doha: The ongoing FIFA Arab Cup Qatar 2021 continues to break boundaries as the host nation prepares for the global football fiesta - FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.
The Arab Cup has seen 16 countries from the region, including the Middle East and Africa, compete in a thrilling competition with Qatar, Egypt, Tunisia and Algeria left.
Over 560,000 tickets have been sold so far; Qatar residents purchased approximately 89 percent of all the tickets sold.
A record 63,439 fans attended the quarter-finals match between Qatar and the UAE.
Speaking at a press conference yesterday, Abdulaziz Al Mawlawi, Host Country Mobility Operations Director, Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy, Jassim Al Jassim, Deputy Chief Operations Officer, Q22, and Colonel Jassim Al Sayed, Executive Director of the Office of the Deputy Chairman of the SSOC, said the competition is a perfect opportunity for organisers to prepare for the World Cup as record attendance numbers in Qatari sports history are achieved.
“The tournament has provided a golden opportunity to test preparations ahead of the World Cup and all relevant infrastructure,” Al Mawlawi said.
“We have tested all our transport infrastructure, including Qatar Rail operating 71,000 journeys and running for 21 hours per day, rather than the usual 17 hours. In addition, Ashghal provided 62,000 parking spaces for fans, while Hamad International Airport operated a dedicated terminal to welcome the 15 visiting teams.”
Also, officials noted that the Hay’ya Fan ID use has been successful with over 200k issued so far, and the lesson learned from its application would be analysed for improved service in 2022, while over 5,000 volunteers from 90 countries, including 100 people from Oman, are participating in the competition.
“We have hosted 28 matches so far, including the quarter-finals. We have learned many important lessons concerning stadiums, training site operations, and Fan ID,” Deputy COO Q22 Al Jassim said.
More than 1,000 media accreditations were issued, along with 252 filming applications.
Vice President of Operations for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Jassim Al Jassim, Executive Director of the Office of the Assistant Head of the Security and Safety Operations Committee for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Colonel Jassem Al Buhashem, Mobility Operations Director at the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy (SC) Abdulaziz Ali Al Mawlawi and Media Expert at SC Mohammed Al Khanji during a press conference, yesterday.
Around 25 percent of fans used public transport – either the Doha Metro or shuttle bus services – to attend matches, while there were more than 680,000 journeys on the metro to participate in special activities along the Doha Corniche. Around 83 percent of fans took the Doha Metro to attend the match between Egypt and Sudan at Stadium 974.
“There have been no problems or crises in the stadiums,” Colonel Al Sayed.
“All the security operations have gone as planned. Our security units will continue their efforts in collaboration with various stakeholders to ensure the safety and security of all fans attending the final matches.”
Meanwhile, Colonel Al Sayed stressed that the security agencies had set strategies to protect everyone involved in the competition.
According to him, the flow of traffic has been good and different operations have been activated inside the stadiums, and several security teams and communications have been activated.
On dealing with unruly fans, officials said Qatar has hosted several tournaments already and has had many security officers participating in global events. Hence, they have a lot of experience dealing with a riot or hooliganism.
They stressed that the security officials would be ready to handle any situation if spectators incite riots and other disagreements.
