Nearly one and a half million fans will head to Qatar for the World Cup in the coming weeks. For a country that is almost three times smaller than Belgium, this logically causes logistical problems.
Qatar has therefore invested billions in overnight accommodation in recent years, but low budget solutions should also offer solace.
For example, fan villages have been set up in the host cities to provide beds for thousands of fans.
The Rawdat Al Jahhaniya fan village is one of them. The British newspaper The Guardian went there and saw how each cabin is equipped with a small bathroom, a television, a fridge and air conditioning. The fans who stay there are therefore mostly satisfied, despite the expensive price: about 200 euros per night.
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The so-called tent villages can count on much less support. A BBC camera crew took a look at the Qetaifan Island Fan Village and found an oversized festival campsite.
Thousands of plastic tents are lined up. The tents themselves are equipped with two beds, a fan and a closet. The sanitary facilities are – festival-wise – shared, but come nowhere near Tomorrowland, for example.
Fortunately, fans can watch the games on a bean bag in front of a big screen or use the outdoor fitness area.
Protection against the leaden sun that peaks well above 30 degrees around noon? Oops, nowhere to be seen.
On Friday, 48 hours before the opening match, the fan village was far from finished. For example, floors were laid and chairs placed with man and power while the first fans already moved in. The price tag: again about 200 euros per night.
A French fan testified to the BBC that he paid a hefty penny for his stay in the fan village. “I paid 3,300 euros for hotel stays, not for a tent camp,” he says angrily, showing his booking ticket.
A couple from Mexico had also imagined the stay completely differently. “When we saw the photos online, it seemed like a nice idea,” they say. “That feeling changed upon arrival. The tents are made of hard plastic. The warm weather makes it unbearable inside. Moreover, the water is brown, so I brush my teeth with bottled water.”
The negative reactions are also pouring in on Twitter. “The guests check in here without knowing that you can’t get drinking water without a wristband, but nobody knows where you can get such a wristband,” writes one woman. “It’s thirty degrees here, the nearest shop is an hour’s walk.”
