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Fans are braving scrum-like crowds, extortionate prices and mockery from the FIFA leadership to finally get their hands on a pint at the Qatar World Cup.
Alcohol sales in Doha got off to a calamitous start as hundreds of football fans swarmed towards beer tents resulting in chaotic scenes in the FIFA fan zone.
Queues were long and packed and there were scenes of near pandemonium as fans surged through barriers to quench their thirst.
Security struggled to control the boisterous crowd, many of whom were chanting ‘we want some beer’ in a variety of different languages, including English and Spanish.
It came after FIFA president Gianni Infantino gave a bizarre and lengthy press conference in Doha this afternoon, in which he slammed critics of the World Cup and its booze ban.
This was despite having charged Budweiser £63million to become a sponsor, before they were informed they were not allowed to sell its beer in and around any of the stadiums just two days before kick-off.
The Qataris had previously promised to ‘respect’ all sponsors, but Budweiser were taken by surprise after the Conservative Royal Family allegedly pressured FIFA into the decision.
The FIFA fan zone officially opened today for the first time with beer on sale to fans.
A Croatia fan who succeeded in getting her beers smiles after battling through ‘chaos’
The FIFA Fan Zone in Doha opened on Saturday evening and is designed to hold up to 40,000 people
One England fan said: ‘I paid £12.50 for a pint of watered-down beer and I had to go through a rugby scrum to get it’ (Picture: Mexico fan)
Security struggled to control the hundreds pushing to buy Budweiser, who have a beer monopoly on this year’s tournament
Thousands packed into the FIFA fan zone on its official opening night in Qatar on Saturday
FIFA president Gianni Infantino attacked criticism of Qatar in a fiery press conference today
The alcohol ban at stadiums came as a shock to most fans after FIFA had previously reassured them that despite the country’s strict alcohol laws, they would be able to purchase it while enjoying the games
Bars opened at 6.30pm in the World Cup’s largest fan zone in central Doha, which can accommodate up to 40,000 people.
But fan numbers are thought to have been far below that on Saturday evening as staff and security struggled to control the hundreds pushing to buy Budweiser, who have a beer monopoly on this year’s tournament.
Phillip Bateman, a Leeds United supporter said: ‘It’s utter chaos. If they’re struggling to cope with a relatively small crowd buying beer then how will they managed a crowd on match day?
‘I paid £12.50 for a pint of watered-down beer and I had to go through a rugby scrum to get it.’
Jake, another England fan moaned: ‘I’ve never seen such chaos over beer. There are people pushing and shoving, you have to walk for ages to get to the bar and security are struggling to cope.
‘I’ve got my beers, but I won’t be going back for anymore.’
It came after FIFA president Gianni Infantino lashed out at European critics of World Cup host Qatar today after the state banned the sale of beer in its stadiums two days before the start of the competition.
The ban came as a shock to most fans after FIFA had previously reassured them that despite the country’s strict alcohol laws, they would be able to purchase it while enjoying the games. But those fortunate enough to be sat in corporate boxes, where tickets cost more than $22,450 each, will still be able to enjoy an array of alcoholic drinks.
England fans told MailOnline the tournament has been ‘ruined’ and FIFA should not have ‘given in’, complaining they would not have spent thousands of pounds on tickets and flights if they had known about the ban beforehand.
Qatar enforces an extremely strict interpretation of Islam which restricts women’s rights and criminalises members of the LGBTQ+ community, as well as banning public displays of affection and public alcohol consumption.
Qatar has banned the sale of alcohol inside its stadiums despite a £63million pound sponsorship deal with Budweiser
Fans faced a battle to purchase the expensive pints, and then another to take them back to their companions in one piece
Mr Infantino criticised those speaking out against Qatar’s human rights abuses and management of the World Cup and dismissed complaints over the alcohol ban.
Yesterday, the Qatari royal family demanded that no alcohol be sold inside stadiums at the competition despite FIFA’s £63 million sponsorship deal with Budweiser.
Alcohol is highly restricted in Qatar and drinking in public can be punishable by up to six months in prison – and even public whippings.
Those visiting for the tournament will only be able to buy alcohol in a small number of bars and hotels, or in the FIFA fan zone, where they will be restricted to purchasing four beers per person to stop them getting drunk.
Anyone who is considered to be drunk by Qatari officials risks being taken away to a ‘special area’ to sober up.
Mr Infantino reacted furiously to a backlash from Europeans over the ban, suggesting fans should not complain about not being able to drink.
He told a press conference: ‘Honestly, if this is the biggest issue we have for the World Cup, I will sign immediately, go to the beach and relax until the 18th of December.
‘Every decision we take at this World Cup is a joint decision between Qatar and FIFA.
‘I think personally if for three hours a day, you cannot drink a beer, you will survive.’
The FIFA president added: ‘What we Europeans have been doing for the past 3,000 years, we should be apologizing for the next 3,000 years before we start giving moral lessons to people.’
He said Qatar and capital city Doha will be ready to host the ‘best World Cup ever.’
‘Today I feel Qatari,’ Infantino said. ‘Today I feel Arab. Today I feel African. Today I feel gay. Today I feel a migrant worker.’
Meanwhile fans claim they are paying £185 per night to stay in fan villages with ‘no air’ and rooms the ‘size of a shoebox’.
With less than 24 hours until the World Cup kicks off with the opening ceremony and clash between the host nation and Ecuador in Doha at the Al Bayt Stadium, the fan villages are said to still resemble construction sites.
Footage and images show piles of rubble and sand, ripped up turf and industrial machinery still on-site at the Rawdat Al Jahhaniya fan village, which will be home to thousands of England and Wales fans for the World Cup.
Along with abandoned forklift trucks and a digger next to hundreds of sea containers, promised amenities like a cinema screen and tennis court are also not present, according to The Guardian.
The ‘fitness centre/gym’ appears to be a few pieces of outdoor equipment close to the main entrance and road of the fan village, which is managed by the operator Al Emadi and next to the Ahmad bin Ali stadium.
The newspaper additionally reported that by the side of a tent, that will be used as a mosque during the tournament, is a giant crater, while a portable Starbucks van and a large tented dining hall will serve as catering for the hungry football fans.
Inside the cabins, which opened on Friday and costs £185 a night for a double cabin for two, tiny air-conditioning units are unable to cool the space during the day and rattle too loudly at night to be usable.
Ripped turf at a fan village in Qatar which look more like construction sites just hours before the tournament is set to commence
Painters were still applying finishing touches as others carried out wiring on an electrical point
World Cup fans have complained about the ‘rip off’ accommodation inside £185-a-night metal containers amid piles of rubbish and rubble in Qatar
It is just the latest controversy to plague an already fraught World Cup – the first to be held in a Muslim nation – which has thrown football’s governing ethos and traditional trappings into conflict with the hosts’ conservative interpretation of Islam.
Public displays of affection are banned in the country and homosexuality remains illegal.
Members of the LGBT+ community could even face death under the nation’s strict interpretation of Islam.
Western figures have been heavily criticised for agreeing to work with Qatar for the tournament, most noticeably David Beckham who has become the face of the World Cup.
He signed a reported-£10million deal with the Qataris and filmed multiple promotional videos, including with one Qatari woman who later told MailOnline that being gay is ‘against human nature’ and compared members of the LGBTQ+ community to animals.
This week, UK comedian Joe Lycett challenged Beckham to cease his dealings with the country, threatening to shred £10,000 of his own money on livestream to represent the cost of the deal if he did not do so.
Infantino said European nations have closed their borders to immigrants who wanted to work there, whereas Qatar had offered opportunities to workers from India, Bangladesh and other southeast Asian nations through legal channels.
Migrant laborers who built Qatar’s World Cup stadiums often worked long hours under harsh conditions and were subjected to discrimination, wage theft and other abuses as their employers evaded accountability, London-based rights group Equidem said in a 75-page report released this month.
The Guardian previously reported that more than 6,500 migrant workers had died building Qatar’s World Cup infrastructure.
Under heavy international scrutiny, Qatar has enacted a number of labor reforms in recent years that have been praised by Equidem and other rights groups.
But advocates say abuses are still widespread and that workers have few avenues for redress.
Mr Infantino said: ‘What has been put on the table in the past few months is something quite incredible.’
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