Nasser al-Khater, executive director, Communications and Marketing, Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee with Schalke fans.
The Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee invited 25 Schalke 04 fans, who were visiting Doha for the club’s winter training camp at the Aspire Academy, to engage in an open dialogue with the World Cup organisers on the 2022 mega event which will be held in Qatar.
Nasser al-Khater, executive director, Communications and Marketing, Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee, said, “We were delighted this week to welcome the fans of FC Schalke 04, a passionate and proud club with 110 years of history, for a fan forum on board a dhow. The ideas exchanged and the expectations expressed gave us a glimpse of the positive energy, excitement and cultural exchange which we will witness during the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.”
He added: “We were able to answer questions that fans of one of Germany’s most popular clubs had, and to explain the advantages of our compact World Cup. Fans will save time and money staying in a single hotel for the duration of their visit, have more leisure time to enjoy our unique experience of Qatar and the region, and are able to see up to three matches in a single day.
“Fans are essential to the success of any World Cup, as the 2006 FIFA World Cup and the birth of FIFA Fan Fests in Germany showed. Schalke fans had the honour of having five World Cup matches in their stadium in Gelsenkirchen.
Al-Khater also said that the Committee was keen on getting as many ideas and as much feedback from different quarters to ensure a successful event.
“Our first stadium design is based on the sails of the dhow, and we also discussed the concept of water taxis which fans can take between fan festivals and the stadium. As we prepare to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup, we will continue to incorporate the ideas and feedback of all those who will make the tournament in Qatar truly fantastic and memorable,” he said.