International Football
All eyes zero in on Qatar as football spectacle begins to take shape
On Monday, the countdown begins. For five weeks, English Premier League and La Liga kits will be stashed aside as club allegiances take a back seat.
Instead of the Gunners, Blaugrana, or Nerazzurri, nicknames of teams like Die Mannschaft, Selecao and La Roja will roll off tongues as national pride comes to the fore.
Until Dec 18, only the flag on their chest will matter to the more than 800 players from 32 teams who will begin to trickle into Qatar for the World Cup.
It is an unfamiliar, unusual and uncomfortable scenario as they shift their attention away from their employers midway through the established club football calendar. This is the case for supporters, too.
Timing aside, the host nation has come in for criticism over a number of issues ranging from human rights to its stance on homosexuality and consumption of alcohol.
Qatar pledged labour reforms and since 2016, has improved salaries and living conditions for migrant workers, among other revamps.
Change, though, takes time and as it continues to take place, teams and players will no doubt make their opinions heard over the next few weeks.
Through it all, the World Cup remains special for what it is at its essence: a football spectacle.
Every fan can recall their first tournament experience. Mine is watching Roberto Baggio sky his penalty against Brazil in 1994 on television as I was getting ready for school that morning.
The World Cup creates moments you live with forever
It mesmerises and bewitches. Stirs and stimulates. It can even pit brother against brother.
Nico and Inaki Williams, for example, play for the same club, Athletic Bilbao, in Spain where they were born.
In Qatar, though, 20-year-old Nico has been selected to play for the Spaniards, while big brother Inaki, 28, will represent Ghana, where their parents were born.
Depending on how the teams fare in the group stage, the brothers could meet in the quarter-finals. If they do, it will be all “business”, even if their mother Maria has a “divided heart”, Inaki told ESPN last month.
The World Cup can kindle a wide array of emotions, and also stokes fandom and worship even in nations that have never kicked a ball on its stage.
In India, fans from the small village of Pullavoor in Kerala erected towering cut-outs of Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar in the Kurungattu Kadavu river. It is a level of devotion not many can comprehend.
An Instagram account of Argentina fans based in Kerala has 183,000 followers. In comparison, Ghana’s official football federation has 123,000.
Dhiman Sarkar, a football journalist with the Hindustan Times, explains that the love for Brazil’s football team in India stems from their reputation as entertainers and for being “possibly everyone’s second favourite team”.
“The support for Argentina,” he adds, “is because of Maradona and 1986. (That) was also the first time all games were televised live in India. And how could anyone not fall for him!”
If that was what matches on TV 36 years ago could do, imagine what emotions the World Cup will rouse among football fans over the coming weeks.
The fact a full-scale, in-person tournament will take place is already a massive step forward for the game following nearly three years of the pandemic. The delayed Olympics in 2021 were the first global sports event to take place amid Covid-19. The athletes were in Tokyo but not the fans, with Japan barring spectators in stadiums.
This time, in excess of 1.2 million visitors will arrive in Qatar to attend the tournament, and Fifa president Gianni Infantino has predicted that five billion people – or roughly two-thirds of the world’s population – will watch the action on TV around the globe.
For five weeks, the football world stops and watches
-The Strait Times
The ‘Finalissima’ match between Spain and Argentina that was scheduled to be held in Qatar has been cancelled due to the conflict in the Middle East, while the South American side rejected multiple alternatives, UEFA said on Sunday.
The U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran have affected countries throughout the Gulf, disrupting travel in some of the world’s busiest transit hubs and forcing several sporting events to be cancelled due to safety concerns.
The contest between European champions Spain and Copa America winners Argentina was scheduled for March 27 at Doha’s Lusail Stadium, where fans would have had the opportunity to watch Lionel Messi go head-to-head with Lamine Yamal.
UEFA said they held discussions with the organising authorities in Qatar and concluded that the match could not take place due to the “current political situation” in the region.
“It is a source of great disappointment to UEFA and the organisers that circumstances and timing have denied the teams of the chance to compete for this prestigious prize in Qatar,” UEFA said in a statement.
Qatar’s Local Organising Committee said airspace disruption and travel restrictions led to the cancellation of its Qatar Football Festival, where the host country, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Serbia were also set to play friendly games this month.
The Football Association of Serbia later announced they would play away in Spain on March 27 and host Saudi Arabia four days later.
OTHER ALTERNATIVES REJECTED BY ARGENTINA
The Finalissima’s cancellation was not just about Qatar’s security concerns, however, with UEFA saying they explored other feasible alternatives, but they proved to be ‘unacceptable’ to the Argentinian Football Association (AFA).
UEFA first offered to stage the match at the Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid with a 50:50 split of supporters in the stadium.
A second option was to stage the Finalissima over two legs — at the Bernabeu on March 27 and the second leg in Buenos Aires during an international window before the next Euros and Copa America in 2028.
However, the AFA rejected both options. UEFA said Argentina made a counter offer to play the game after the World Cup but Spain had no available dates.
“Ultimately, UEFA sought a commitment from Argentina that, if a neutral venue in Europe could be found, the game could go ahead on 27 March… or on the alternative date of 30 March. This proposal was also rejected,” UEFA added.
SPAIN WERE READY TO PLAY
The Spanish football federation (RFEF) said they had offered Argentina “all possible options” in collaboration with UEFA to ensure the match went ahead, adding that they had the organisational capacity to stage the clash on short notice.
“From the very outset, the Federation has expressed its absolute commitment to ensuring this match goes ahead, as it believes it brings prestige and international reputation at a crucial time in a World Cup year,” the RFEF said.
“Furthermore, it has worked tirelessly to achieve this. Spain was prepared to play, as has always been stated.”
The 2026 World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada kicks off on June 11.
The 2022 edition of the Finalissima was held at Wembley Stadium in London where Argentina beat Italy 3-0.
-Reuters
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Soccer chiefs from Europe and South America will hold a final meeting before a Thursday deadline to decide whether and where this month’s “Finalissima” between Spain and Argentina will be played, with London emerging as the leading candidate after doubts over Doha, multiple sources told Reuters on Tuesday.
The match between European champions Spain and Copa America holders Argentina had been scheduled for March 27 at Lusail Stadium in Doha.
However, it has become increasingly unlikely that Qatar will host the fixture after the Qatar Football Association suspended soccer tournaments indefinitely following U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran and retaliatory missiles fired at the Arabian Peninsula.
The Spanish FA (RFEF) has been pushing for a swift resolution, mindful that the March international break is viewed as vital preparation ahead of the June-July World Cup in North America.
“I know that negotiations are underway,” Spain coach Luis de la Fuente told Spanish Public Radio (RNE) on Monday. “The first thing, as a society, is to stop the conflict, but once you are immersed in it and you don’t know how long it will last, the solution would be, as long as you can’t play there, to find another venue as soon as possible.
Wembley Stadium staged the previous edition in 2022, when Argentina beat Italy, but it is set to host England v Uruguay on March 27. London, however, has other stadiums capable of staging the showpiece, leaving the English capital as the most likely alternative should Doha be ruled out, sources confirmed.
ALTERNATIVE OPPONENTS CONSIDERED
While keen to face Argentina and high-profile players such as Lionel Messi, sources told Reuters that Spain had made clear their priority was not to waste the last window of international fixtures before the World Cup and they were already contemplating alternative opponents.
With Spain also due to face Egypt three days later, any change would require agreement between the RFEF and European soccer body UEFA, South American confederation CONMEBOL, global governing body FIFA and the Argentine FA (AFA).
The RFEF, AFA and UEFA did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.
A spokesperson for South American confederation CONMEBOL told Reuters that several meetings between the parties had taken place in recent days but did not confirm Thursday’s deadline or London as the preferred venue.
Madrid was initially proposed by the RFEF but rejected by the AFA, who preferred a neutral venue rather than giving Spain home advantage.
Morocco offered to stage the game, but the RFEF was unwilling to back their Mediterranean neighbours amid tensions behind the scenes over the 2030 World Cup, which Spain, Morocco and Portugal will co-host. Both Spain and Morocco are campaigning to stage the final.
Miami was also considered, with Messi based there at Inter Miami, but Hard Rock Stadium is hosting the Miami Open tennis tournament at the same time.
-Reuters
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International Football
Spain-Argentina ‘Finalissima’ in Qatar at risk amid US, Israel attacks on Iran
The match between Spain and Argentina, tagged “Finalissima” in Doha, is in doubt after the Qatar Football Association suspended soccer tournaments indefinitely following U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran and retaliatory missiles fired at the Arabian Peninsula.
The contest between European Championship winners Spain and Copa America champions Argentina was scheduled for March 27 at Doha’s Lusail Stadium, with potential big-name draws including Lamine Yamal and Lionel Messi.
“Qatar Football Association announces the postponement of all tournaments, competitions and matches, effective from today and until further notice,” the association said in a statement on Sunday.
“The new dates for the resumption of competitions will be announced in due course through the Association’s official channels.”
The final call on whether to postpone the game rests with event organisers UEFA and CONMEBOL.
The Bahrain Football Association postponed all its matches until further notice, while the Asian Football Confederation on Sunday announced it was delaying Champions League Elite fixtures in the region.
The Asian Champions League Two, currently at the quarter-final stage, has also been impacted, along with games in the Challenge League.
Countries across the Middle East have been on high alert since Saturday, when the U.S. and Israel launched air strikes against Iran, aimed at diminishing Iran’s military capability.
Iran retaliated by attacking U.S. targets around the region, including in the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar.
On Sunday, Qatar’s interior ministry reported a fire in an industrial zone after debris fell from an intercepted missile.
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