Qatar allows transportation for Soccer fans to Tehran

15th April 2022

2 minutes read

The Qatari government has admitted that it is facing a severe shortage in hotel rooms and that it will not be able to accommodate all the fans of the World Cup, which will be held next November, after long years of deceit, bragging and insistence on its ability to accommodate a championship of this size. The Australian website "De Marge" reported that what is happening in Qatar is a major disaster, as for the first time in the history of the World Cup, the host country fails to find hotel rooms for the fans.

Qatar and Iran continue to converge despite numerous criticisms of their relationship, and exploit Qatar by Iran, but both countries flout claims to sever ties.

Tehran aims to establish a foothold in the 2022 World Cup, as evidenced by the circulation of the image of the World Cup spell “Qatar 2022”, by Iranian graphic designer Hossein Ojaghi.

Iran is currently seeking to act as a host for fans heading to neighboring Qatar for the World Cup, with free visas and officials seeking to double flights between the two countries and prepare hotels for a possible mass influx, according to a report by France24.

2022 FIFA World Cup

Iranian government spokesman Ali Bahadori Jahmi announced on Twitter the cabinet’s decision to grant free visas to fans of the Qatar World Cup 2022 during the tournament’s dates between November 21 and December 18, 2022. He confirmed that the abolition of visa fees “contributes significantly to attracting World Cup fans to visit Iran and to developing the tourism sector in the country”.

Iranian Minister of Roads and Urban Reconstruction Rostam Ghasemi said: “The Qataris are very interested in using Iran’s infrastructure for the 2022 World Cup”, he said, adding that “Iran should use all its capabilities to benefit from this event”.

“Ghasemi’s remarks came on the heels of a two-day visit by Qatari Transport Minister Jassim bin Saif al-Sulaiti to the Iranian island of Kish, where he signed six cooperation agreements, which also included documents originally concluded between the two sides during Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi’s visit to Qatar in February”, and others related to developing co-operation between the two countries in the field of aviation, and one on co-operation in the field of maritime transport.

The report also noted the controversy surrounding the 92-square-kilometer Kish Island in Hormuz province, which is a sand beach resort. It is about 270 kilometers northeast of Doha and needs to be reached by plane for 40 minutes or six hours by boat, as it is tangibly far from Qatar.

According to Iranian media, the two ministers are discussing Iran’s support for the Qatar World Cup 2022. These include the establishment of regular maritime routes between the ports of the two countries and the agreement to increase the number of flights between the two countries.

“Among these efforts to benefit Tehran from the event was Ali Akbar Safaei, executive director of the Iranian Ports and Maritime Organization”. He said more than 4,000 passengers could be transported to Qatar every day during the World Cup.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi held talks with the Emir of Qatar, Sheik Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, on means of cooperation in organizing the World Cup events, which Qatar is scheduled to host later this year. Raisi expressed his country’s readiness to provide all kinds of assistance to Qatar in organizing the 2022 World Cup from its islands near Qatar.