As with the Handball World Cup 2015, the host country hires fans to cheer
The planet enters World Leisure Week, a World Cup celebrated in the land of endless skyscrapers, the taste of night lights where it always seems like Christmas and the golden color of the glowing desert. It’s what you expect in Qatar, where the locals joke with the visitor with the temperature as the epicenter: there are only two seasons in the country, they say, summer or hell. It is so hot on the edge of the artificial beach surrounded by endless buildings that in Doha and in the associated emirates, Bahrain, Abu Dhabi and Dubai, it is only possible to concentrate life and human relations in shopping malls and hotels, always so neat and acclimatized with air conditioning. Artificial as concentrated air is the first proposal to come from Qatar in the paid image campaign with a World Cup football: plastic fans, stuffed fans and that creates general frenzy and a barrage of criticism.
The World Cup falsely begins with those fake followers who have filled half the world’s websites and televisions with a comedic, if not pathetic, staging. Several clips have been published on the Twitter account @roadto2022es in which hundreds of men, and not women, dress up in the jerseys of the teams of Argentina, Brazil, France or Spain, four of the favorites to win according to the bets, and do like being fans who landed in Doha.
They are copper-skinned people, so typical in Arab countries, boys with mustaches or beards and black hair like the inhabitants of the Persian Gulf emirates, no blonde or anything like that, no white profile, no sign of authenticity. They look more like extras or extras from a movie walking the streets of the Souq Waqif – a souk in the ancient land of pearls with its craft stalls and traditional local clothes – dressed in t-shirts, scarves and banners of the aforementioned selections . Between canned laughter and monosyllabic utterances in an artificial setting, the supposed fans walk organized behind the banners, trying to transform the reality of football into a dimension of propaganda for the Arab country.
The experiment with plastic fans is not new in Doha. The 2015 World Handball Championship already consolidated one of the country’s maxims in its relationship with sport. What does not exist is bought. And if not, then it was invented. Or both things. Without any embarrassment, the Qatari regime hired 60 Spanish fans to cheer on their country’s team during the championship. The chosen supporters came from a Cuenca supporters club, and supporters from Aranda de Duero, Puerto de Sagunto and Vigo were added. The government of Qatar financed the trip to the Spaniards, the stay in a hotel in the capital, the relocation of the animation team (bass drums, wind instruments and percussion) and gave them a daily allowance of twenty euros. When the Qatari team, coached by the experienced and successful Valero Rivera, reached the final of the championship, the Spaniards pocketed just over 400 euros for their holiday residence in Doha, where they were only obliged to watch the matches of the Arab team. team to attend.
The most shocking moment of the extravagant experience for handball fans came on January 21, seven years ago. Sixty Hispanics hired by the government of Qatar had to cheer on the Arab team in the match against the Spanish team. Wallet breath. In Qatar, the country with the largest liquefied gas reserves in the world and one of the main oil producers, its majesty is the dollar.
In the glossary of the terms used in the country, the issue conflates the QIA with the bidun. The first represents the Qatar Investment Authority, a Qatari sovereign wealth fund founded in 2005 with initial equity of $100 billion and currently valued at $450 billion. It maintains investments in numerous consortia: Deutsche Bank, Barclays, Heathrow Airport, Siemens, Porsche, Shell, Credit Suisse, Louis Vuitton, Paris Saint-Germain, France Telecom or Merrill Lynch. The bidún refers to the undocumented, those individuals and groups of workers who have not regularized their nationality because they live in different Gulf states depending on the time of year.
The Spanish team travels to Qatar tomorrow, after taking on the Jordanian team in the last preparatory match. In addition to cashing in events with sponsors, the team devoted itself to preparing for the World Cup with the 26 called up by Luis Enrique. “Despite our youth, we are not afraid of the tournament,” said Pedri, the Barcelona player who starred in one of the publicity events. “I am one of those who dreamed of playing in a World Cup and to be part of it is a dream come true. My parents took it upon themselves to remind me how important it is to be able to participate in a World Cup,” said Rodri from Manchester City, one of the footballers who does not use social networks. Ansu Fati appeared in wedding attire. Black suit with large lapels and white shirt. Optimism in his words. “Spain will fight for everything. You always have to believe. Hopefully we can make it a great tournament.”
Source: La Verdad
I am Shawn Partain, a journalist and content creator working for the Today Times Live. I specialize in sports journalism, writing articles that cover major sporting events and news stories. With a passion for storytelling and an eye for detail, I strive to be accurate and insightful in my work.
