KSI x AboFlah celebrate with the trophy. Pic: Rajan Vadakkemuriyil/The Peninsula
Doha, Qatar: The charity football game between Team KSI x AboFlah and Team Chunkz x IShowSpeed, held at 974 Stadium, provided families with great entertainment on a breezy Friday night.
Social media funnyman Adam Waheed netted the winner during the dying embers of the game, helping the KSI x AboFlah team edge the opponents 6-5 and AboFlah avenge last year’s 7-5 defeat to Chunkz.
FIFA’s Chief of Global Football Development and legendary former Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger returned as manager, while the US Men’s National Football Team coach Mauricio Pochettino replaced Italian coach Antonio Conte for this year’s game.
Keji, a Qatar resident accompanied by his wife, told The Peninsula that the list of former football legends participating was what drew his attention, remarking that names like Thierry Henry, Andres Iniesta, David Silva, Alessandro Del Piero and others helped influence his decision to attend.
The legends certainly entertained, with a neat goal from Alessandro Del Piero and Thierry Henry’s signature fake pass sending roars throughout the stadium. The Match For Hope was not Keji’s first visit to the Stadium 974, as he had previously attended a 2022 World Cup clash in the famous shipping containers stadium.
Manuel, a resident from Spain, brought his wife and two sons along to witness the game. He was also admittedly drawn by the legends featured in the game, namely his countrymen David Silva and Andres Iniesta. His children came to see IShowSpeed.
The charity aspect of the match was also a big driving factor behind Manuel’s attendance.Over $10m (QR39.17m) was raised by the end of the match, with the proceeds going to support Education Above All (EAA) initiatives in several countries, including Lebanon, Palestine, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Syria.
Last year’s inaugural Match for Hope, held at the Ahmed bin Ali Stadium in February 2024, raised over $8.8m (QR32.04m) for 70,000 children who had limited access to schools across various parts of the globe.Diana from Lebanon accompanied her teenage son Aurelio, who attended mostly to see his favorite YouTubers.
The diligent mother spent the majority of the game capturing footage for her other, younger son back home who had missed out on the event due to having slept early, with the intent of sharing them with him when he wakes up. In addition to the football, the attending crowd was also treated to live performances by Syrian singer Rasha Rizk before kickoff and Grammy award-winning American rapper Macklemore at halftime.
