Alkass Digital
Ahmed Khellil Abbassi (pictured), Executive Director of Competitions and Football Development at the Qatar Stars League (QSL) has said preparations are in full swing for the next QNB Stars League season, hoping for yet another successful season.
In an interview, Abbassi spoke on wide range of topics regarding the preview and upcoming seasons. Following are the excerpts.
ADVERTISING
Q - What’s your assessment of the last season (2020-21)?
Overall, I think last season went off fairly well despite the challenges we faced, the most important of which was dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic.
Q - How about the next season (2021-22)?
The next season will start in September, 2021, and there will be many interruptions due to the National Team’s overseas commitments, and the calendar for the next season will be announced soon after the teams’ engagements are completed. In general, club training will start on July 1, 2021, in line with the preparations for the new season and, here, it may be noted that clubs have the right to organise overseas camps, provided that precautionary measures and restrictions forced by the coronavirus pandemic are followed. As for the end of the league and Amir Cup for the next season (2021-22), it will be in the beginning of April, 2022, and after that date, the National Team players will be released from all local or foreign commitments with their clubs in order to make them focus fully on the special project for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Q - Is there a specific strategy to develop the league championship?
Yes, as we were entrusted with assessing the current situation and developing a strategy for the league championship, with the aim of enhancing the level of competition between the competing teams and providing entertaining high-quality football, as mentioned by Qatar Football Association (QFA) President His Excellency Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa bin Ahmed Al Thani during its General Assembly meeting, which have been working on since the beginning of last season. Thankfully, the assessment was completed and recommendations have been submitted for the final approval.
Q - What are the main points of this strategy?
At the outset, it must be emphasized that our main goal is to enhance the technical and professional levels of Qatar football, the domestic championships and league championship, and to increase the level of competitiveness between the teams. For this purpose, this strategy has been developed, the most prominent of it being:
- Studying the right number of clubs participating in the league championship with the aim of raising the competitive level and providing high-quality football, as a recommendation was made for the appropriate number to achieve this.
- Establishing a mechanism and system for identifying and selecting outstanding players and coaches, evaluating their performance in a scientific and thoughtful manner, as well as developing a new mechanism for the contracts of coaches and players so that the financial value for them is commensurate with their technical levels and actual value.
- Establishing a working mechanism to expand the base of professionalism by getting Second Division clubs to Qatar Stars League, with the aim of developing them professionally and technically, to raise the level of Second Division championship by engaging them with first-class clubs until the completion of the legal, administrative and organisational procedures that we’re currently working on with all parties.
- Developing the Club Participation Agreement in QSL tournaments in line with the professional development plan that we’re currently working on, which mainly aims to raise the level of competition, and provide enjoyable and high-quality football.