Qatar vague on alcohol at 2022 World Cup

Qatar’s sports minister has addressed many of the challenges facing the country in hosting the 2022 World Cup in an interview with the Associated Press, particularly its provision of alcohol.

In an interview with the Associated Press Salah bin Ghanem bin Nasser al-Ali, Qatar’s sports minister, said the country was working to come up with “creative solutions” on the issue of alcohol provision for visitors. 

Currently alcohol is only sold in certain hotels in Doha with visitors required to present their passports, while non-Muslim residents can obtain a license to buy alcohol in a government-run store.

Therefore football fans hoping to enjoy a pint over a match may be left disappointed, along with the world’s big brewers who more often than not benefit from a boost in sales thanks to such world sporting events.

Remaining vague on whether alcohol will be sold inside stadiums Nasser al-Ali merely said that the country is trying to come up with a “creative solution” to the issue. 

He said: “In the hotels and many areas we have alcohol but we have also our own system that people need to respect. As we bid for 2022, we will respect all the rules and regulations by FIFA. We can study this and minimize the impact on our people and tradition. I think we can be creative, finding solutions for all of this. But we respect all the rules and regulations.”

Qatar’s main source of legislation comes from Sharia law with flogging a common punishment for alcohol consumption or illicit sexual relations, a law many foreign nationals have fallen foul to in recent years.

Another contentious issue is homosexuality and if gay people would be welcomed to the event, to which al-Ali said: “It’s exactly like the alcohol question.”

For Qatari Muslims, homosexuality is a crime punishable by death.

He added: “We are studying all these issues. We can adapt, we can be creative to have people coming and enjoying the games without losing the essence of our culture and respecting the preference of the people coming here. I think there is a lot we can do.”

He went on to boast that the event would set a benchmark that would be “almost impossible to beat”, adding: “God help the country that will host the World Cup after us.”

Russia is set to host the next World Cup in 2018, followed by Qatar in 2022.