International News Outlets Commend Magnificent World Cup Closing Ceremony

International News Outlets Commend Magnificent World Cup Closing Ceremony

International news agencies and newspapers have highlighted the closing ceremony of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, describing it as exceptional, majestic and most magnificent in the history of the tournament. Argentina, captained by Lionel Messi, lifted the coveted trophy beating France 4 - 2 in a penalty shootout on Sunday.

The French news agency Agence France-Presse (AFP) pointed out the tweet of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani in which he said that Qatar has fulfilled its promise of delivering an exceptional tournament from the land of Arabs and thanked everyone who contributed to its success.

The agency recalled the statement of FIFA President Gianni Infantino, in which he described the tournament as the best among all the previous editions.
German news agency DPA referred to the closing ceremony performance by two Arab poets - Tamim al-Barghouti and Mohamed Ould Bemba, who affirmed that the spirit of football was reflected in the tournament, promoting peace, equality and coexistence by emphasising that there are no differences between the competitors, as humanity is equal in the football world and the privileges are distributed equally to everyone.

"These words embody the relationship between Qatar and the challenges it faced in order to organise an exceptional event such as the World Cup, and shed light on Qatar's resilience and determination supported by regional and International stances with the right to organise, without double standards or changing measures in judgments," DPA said.

The agency indicated that more than 3.4mn tickets were sold for the tournament matches that took place in eight world-class stadiums, all located within an hour of the centre of the Qatari capital, Doha. The German news agency stressed Qatar's success in hosting the first close-distance edition in the history of the World Cup since its launch in 1930, explaining that the proximity between stadiums allowed the fans to attend more than one match in a day during the first stages of the tournament matches, and that the country received more than 1.4mn visitors over a period of 29 days.

DPA noted that in addition to attending the World Cup matches, fans enjoyed a variety of recreational activities at many locations across the country, including the FIFA Fan Festival at Al Bidda Park in Doha, which received nearly 2mn fans, in addition to the Doha Corniche, and the areas surrounding the stadiums. The tourist attractions in Qatar served as destinations for fans from everywhere to get together to celebrate their passion for football, and learn about diverse cultures from around the globe in an exceptional atmosphere, DPA added.

Turkey's Anadolu Agency described the closing ceremony as "inspiring" and that the ceremony focused on the message of "building a bridge between cultures".

Russia Today channel commented that His Highness the Amir of Qatar was keen to send a message to the winner and participants in the finals of the 22nd edition of the FIFA World Cup. It republished the tweet in which His Highness congratulated Argentina for winning the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 trophy and France for the runner-up position, and extended his thanks to all the participating teams for their wonderful performance and the fans who cheered for them enthusiastically.

Russia Today also shed light on the "Bisht" in which was draped on Messi before he received the World Cup trophy.
AFP Sports indicated that after the conclusion of the World Cup, Qatar is aspiring to be a "world leader in the field of sports", and seeking to host the Olympic Games in 2036.

The agency stated that the road is long, but several major milestones have been set to win the honor of organising such an event. AFP Sports pointed out that Qatar has organised several international tournaments with great success, including the Asian Games in 2006, the World Handball Championships in 2015 and the 2019 World Athletics Championships.

Qatar will also organise the next Asian Football Cup, the World Swimming Championships in 2024, the World Table Tennis Championships in 2025 and the Asian Games in 2030.

The Algerian News Agency commented on the FIFA Fan Festival, served as a destination for foreign and local fans during the tournament, with all the World Cup matches shown on a giant screen, in addition to free entertainment.

Tunisian News Agency (TAP) confirmed that the World Cup in Qatar achieved many records, perhaps the most prominent of which is the total attendance of 3,404,252 in the stadiums throughout the days of the tournament.

The agency pointed out that Qatar 2022 ranked third in the number of public attendance in the history of the World Cup. The 1994 FIFA World Cup USA topped the list of the largest public attendance in the history of the tournament, as it witnessed the presence of 3,587,538 fans. The 2014 World Cup in Brazil comes in second place with an attendance of 3,429,873 fans, and the 2006 World Cup in Germany comes in fourth place with an attendance of 3,359,439 fans.

The French television station, RMC, commented, "Messi and Argentina are at the top of the world, despite France's heroic performance and Kylian Mbappe's hat-trick."

The French newspaper "Le Parisien" indicated that France "was close to a miracle" but was "deprived of the third star", while the French newspaper "L'Equipe" wrote that the final was "perhaps the best in history."

The British newspaper "The Sun" praised the match, describing it as "the best final match ever," while the Spanish newspaper "Marca" wrote, "Messi has now got his well-deserved award."

Several TV channels covered the closing ceremony of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. The Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy Secretary General HE Hassan al-Thawadi told the British Sky News TV that the 22nd edition of the tournament reflects the great work that Qatar has done in organising the World Cup, most notably that Qatar has brought together the whole world with its various cultures and beliefs about sports, in a message of peace through football.

HE al-Thawadi stressed that the World Cup reflected the distinctive image of the region and the great capabilities of Qatar in the success of any sport events. He underlined that the World Cup not only allowed Qatar to show its best but also changed the perception of others about this part of the world.

Speaking to the Lebanese MTV, Qatar Tourism's (QT) public relations and Communication Officer Maryam al-Maslamani, confirmed that the World Cup has put Qatar on the world map and many visitors were surprised by the excellent infrastructure, vast roads, and diverse entertainment venues, in addition to the wonderful combination of modernity, antiquity and authentic Arab heritage.

The official pointed out that many tourist places were opened shortly before the World Cup, including the beaches of West Bay, Al Maha Island, Lusail Boulevard. The QT's plan, which is part of the Qatar National Vision 2030, is to double the number of tourists to 6mn or three times compared to 2022, and contribute to increasing the local and economic income of the State by 7% to 12%.

(QNA)