goal.com
Qatar is all set to host the 2019 FIFA Club World Cup in December this year, even as preparations for the 2022 World Cup are underway.
With the tournament less than a month away, Nasser Al-Khater, the CEO of FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, feels the country is ready to host the champions of the FIFA Confederations around the world along with Qatar Stars League (QSL) winner Al-Sadd.
Qatar will also be the hosts for the 24th edition of the Gulf Cup which will kick off on November 24, 2019, wherein eight nations from the middle-east compete against each other.
"It is exciting. We feel ready. We have been preparing for a long time. The opportunity will be a testament to know how good we are. Prior to the Club World Cup, we are hosting the GCC Cup (Arabian Gulf Cup) as well. It will also be very good preparation for us for the Club World Cup," Nasser Al-Khater told Goal.
Al-Khater sees a great opportunity in the two upcoming tournaments. Given the fact that fans will come in all around the globe for the Club World Cup and especially from rival nations in the middle-east for the Gulf Cup, it offers a chance of Qatar to gauge the sentiments of the supporters attending their teams' fixtures. The learnings will be of help in the run-in to the World Cup as Qatar looks to put up a great show for the fans expected to come in during the 2022 event.
He said, "We will be getting (closely track) the sentiment of the fans coming for the upcoming Club World Cup and GCC Cup. We want to make sure all fans here are going to have something that covers the cultural elements for them to see and make sure that it is really a comprehensive experience for them."
The Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy (SC), the organisation responsible for the timely delivery of the infrastructure for the World Cup in Qatar, has already unveiled two stadiums and had announced that all training facilities have been prepared well in advance.
As CEO of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 LLC, a joint venture between FIFA and SC's Local Organising Committee, Al-Khater reiterated that the preparations for the big event are as per the schedule.
"Our preparations are going as per plan. The roads and infrastructural projects are almost 90 percent done, they will be ready for 2022. Two stadiums (Khalifa & Al Janoub) are already completed and by the end of this year, two more will be completed.
"By the first quarter of 2020, we want to finish two more and a further two by the end of 2020. All the training facilities have been prepared and ready. The metro will be fully operational by the start of the Club World Cup."
This year's Club World Cup will feature European champions Liverpool who will compete against the New Caledonian club Hienghene Sport. QSL winner Al-Sadd, Esperance de Tunis from Africa, CONCACAF region's Monterrey and the winners of Copa Libertadores and AFC Champions League will also feature in the tournament.