FIFA has announced that, alcohol will not be on sale at any of the eight stadiums in Qatar, during the World Cup tournament. However, it will be made available for purchase in selected areas within the stadiums, despite its sale being strictly limited in Qatar.
Those in the cooperate parts of the stadiums at the tournament will still be able to purchase alcohol, and these changes were made on the 18th of November 2020, two days before the kick off of the tournament.
According to a statement made by the world football’s governing body, during the discussions between authorities of the host country and FIFA, “a decision has been made to focus on the sale of alcoholic beverages on the FIFA fan festival, other fan destinations and licensed venues, removing sales points of beer from Qatar’s FIFA World Cup 2022 stadium perimeters.”
The football’s governing body also stated that, nothing is going to affect the sale of “Bud Zero”, an alcohol -free beverage made for people who want to quit drinking alcohol. It also mentioned that the “Bud Zero” beverage will still be available at all World Cup stadiums in Qatar.
The governing body however ensured that the authorities of Qatar together with FIFA will continue to ensure that the stadiums and its environs provide an “enjoyable, respectful and pleasant experience for all fans.”
Football Supporters Criticize The Timing Of The Decision
The Football Supporters’ Association ( FSA) has criticized the timing of the decision of FIFA and the authorities of Qatar to ban the sale of beer in the stadiums during the tournament.
It stated that some fans like to drink beer during a game while others do not, saying that the real issue was not about the drinking preferences of fans at the game, but rather the timing with which the decision was made and publicized was the real problem.
According to a spokesperson from the FSA, this indicated that there was complete lack of communication and clarity amongst the organizing committee and the supporters.
“If they can change their minds on this at a moment’s notice, with no explanation, supporters will have understandable concerns about whether they will fulfil other promises relating to accommodation, transport or cultural issues.”
FSA Spokesperson
FIFA changed the start date of the world Cup in August, in order for Qatar to play against Ecuador as the first competition of the game. The tournament is scheduled to start on Sunday 20th of November 2022, and end on the 18th of December 2022. It has been recorded as one of the shortest World Cup tournaments since the tournament in Argentina, in the year 1978.
This means that the schedule for the matches during most days will be packed with four games per day instead of three games as recorded in most World Cup tournaments. Out of the eight stadiums that have been built in preparation for the tournament, seven of them were built from scratch.
These stadiums have removable seats which will be taken out after the tournament, and Stadium 974 which was constructed out of shipping containers, would be entirely disassembled after the tournament.
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