Qatar has inaugurated Lusail Stadium, the largest of the eight stadiums for the 2022 World Cup and the host of the final match, with a grand event featuring the “Lusail Super Cup” match between Egypt's Zamalek and Saudi Arabia's Al-Hilal. The stadium, which has a capacity of 80,000 spectators, was filled, except for the first tier of the eastern stand where a musical concert led by Egyptian artist Amr Diab took place before the match.
Lusail was chosen as a home by the founder of modern Qatar, Sheikh Jassim bin Mohammed Al Thani, in the 19th century, where he built a fortress located 23 kilometers from Doha. The name of the city is derived from "Al-Wasol," which refers to a rare plant that is native to the Lusail area.
Nasser Al-Khater, CEO of the World Cup, stated, “70 days remain until the start of the World Cup; this (match between Zamalek and Al-Hilal) is an important milestone for us, and we are pleased with the event, the audience is large... We will address the issues that emerged regarding entry to the stadium and others.”
Lusail Stadium, equipped with cooling systems, is the last of the seven newly built stadiums inaugurated by the gas-rich Gulf state and previously hosted a friendly match between Al-Arabi and Al-Rayyan on August 11 in the second round of the Qatari league.
The massive stadium in the modern city will host ten matches during the World Cup, including Argentina-Saudi Arabia, Brazil-Serbia, Argentina-Mexico, Portugal-Uruguay, Saudi Arabia-Mexico, and Cameroon-Brazil in the group stage, plus one match each in the Round of 16, quarter-finals, semi-finals, and the final.
The 64 matches of the World Cup will take place in eight stadiums, seven of which are new: Lusail, Al-Bayt, Ahmad bin Ali, 974, Al-Thumama, Al-Wakrah, and Education City, in addition to the redevelopment of the Khalifa International Stadium.
Qatar will host the World Cup starting from November 20, embracing the winter months due to high summer temperatures, making it the closest edition in modern history, with the longest distance between two World Cup stadiums not exceeding 75 kilometers. More than one million visitors are expected in the country with a population of 2.8 million. Qatari organizers have spent billions of dollars in preparation for the event since winning the right to host the tournament in 2010.
