Qatar’s vast wealth helps it host FIFA World Cup 2022
Qatar will host the 2022 FIFA World Cup finals after winning the right to host the 2022 and 2026 tournaments.
The country, which hosted the 2006 and 2010 editions of the mega event, was awarded the right to host the tournament after winning a case in the International Court of Arbitration in the Hague, which declared Qatar as the official host of the 2018 and 2022 tournaments and lifted its suspension of the international governing body FIFA.
Qatar has a wealth of oil and gas reserves, and has a sovereign wealth fund which reportedly was worth around $100bn (£79bn) for 2018.
It was, however, expected to come up against stiff competition from the United States, which will host the 2032 edition, despite Donald Trump cancelling the tournament in October 2017.
FIFA confirmed on Thursday that it will award the 2022 tournament to Qatar in a meeting in Switzerland starting on 21 January, with the 2022 final to be held a week later in the city of Doha.
Qatar’s hosting has been hailed as a triumph by many with the country also hosting the 2020 and 2024 events, and is due to host the Asian Games for the second time in 2022.
Qatar’s success in winning the right to host the world’s two largest sporting events comes despite the country’s human rights record, which is regularly ranked among the least free in the world.
Qatar was also placed on a US sanctions list over the weekend after the US imposed sanctions on six officials in response to the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Last month, the state-owned broadcaster Qatar Satellite Channel, the world’s largest TV network, said its broadcasts will continue despite the US embargo.
A day after the announcement, Saudi Arabia imposed an embargo on Qatar, accusing it of being “unilateral and aggressive” in its role in supporting “terrorism” in the region.
