We expect Indian fans to visit Qatar in big numbers: Nuaimi

The 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar will see a sizeable presence of Indian football fans, feels Fatima Al Nuaimi, the executive director of communications, Supreme Committee of Qatar World Cup.

“Qatar and India have centuries-old ties and we consider India as our strategic partner. Apart from the geographical proximity of the two countries, Qatar Airways connect a lot of Indian cities. This shows how close our ties are. We are anticipating a lot of fans from India to visit Qatar and enjoy the football festivity happening during the World Cup,” Nuaimi said during an interaction on Thursday.

“Qatar had extended the goodwill allowing the Indian national football team to train ahead of the World Cup qualifiers (in June this year) in Doha,” she said while illustrating her country’s close ties with India.

The pandemic has not been able to slow down Qatar’s preparations for the World Cup, which is now 98% ready for the Quadrennial event.

“When it comes to stadium and infrastructure, we are 98% ready. I am hopeful that the World Cup will be the biggest sporting event after the COVID era. We expect a 100% fan attendance and because of Qatar’s unique location, there will be a lot of attendance from Middle East and the rest of Asia. I am sure there will lot of fans from countries like India and China even though their teams are not participating,” Nuaimi said.