Footage of the accommodation at the 2022 Qatar World Cup has leaked online and appears to show the shocking state of the rooms many fans are paying a significant amount to stay in.
Videos of the supposed standard of hotel rooms have been circulating online with various people joking that these so-called rooms are the World Cup equivalent of Fyre Festival.
As you can see in the original Snapchat clip reshared below, the person filming tours around rows upon rows of shoddy, bare-bone and flimsy-looking tents lined up along a road that also looks barely finished.
The entrance to each of these tents is marked by nothing more than a door pattern on one fluttering sheet of plastic, with the caption quite rightly noting that “if there is a sand storm you can kiss those tents goodbye”.
With the temperatures in the Middle Eastern country expected to easily break 30C during the day even in the winter, the presence of tents and easily ventilated accommodation shouldn’t come as that much of a surprise.
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However, it’s fair to say that the quality of these lodgings leaves a lot to be desired and they don’t look very stable when you take more severe weather conditions into account. Even more staggeringly, the 6,000 rooms in this 3.1 square kilometre fan park are reported to be worth $100 (approx. £84) a pop.
While these obviously don’t look like the most luxurious lot of tents you’d expect from an oil-rich nation’s tourist offerings, the same account flagged that this is not the most high-end option available to fans attending the tournament.
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Responding to a commenter, user Chris went on to share footage of a more upmarket and sturdier-looking structure complete with shower facilities, a lounge and a more grand bedroom. He also quoted cargo container rooms from around $200 and his own two-bedroom apartment for $460 per night.
U get what u pay for. I think those tents are just under $100 per night way outside of the city. I hear the containers are $200 but are alot better in the city. I think we are paying $460 per night in a 2BR apartment near the metro station in Doha. pic.twitter.com/TVA5bfcN0J
Nevertheless, we won’t get to see what the true hospitality experience for most fans is going to look like until we see footage from travelling supporters themselves.
Budget option or not, we suspect most would have been hoping for more than what they currently look to be paying for, with many declaring the footage as “#fyrefestival 2.0” and an “absolute joke”. Wait until they see the food…
Featured Image — @Chris120778 (via Twitter)/@adeltayeb69 (via Snapchat)
Sport
Premier League Darts is returning to Manchester’s AO Arena in 2027
Lydia Mastrolonardo
Premier League Darts is confirmed to be returning to Manchester next year.
Now’s your chance to see the youngest world champion in darts history, AKA Warrington’s very-own Luke ‘The Nuke’ Littler, show us how it’s done, as next year’s BetMGM Premier League Darts lineup has just been announced this week – with various dates confirmed across 17 different cities in the UK and Europe.
And Manchester is one of those cities, as the AO Arena has shared that they are set to host an evening next April, and we couldn’t be more excited about it.
This means that we will be lucky enough to witness the biggest names in world darts all under one roof, including headliners Gian van Veen and Luke Humphries, as well as Littler.
Manchester is the only northern city to get the pleasure of hosting the event next year, as Liverpool is also on the lineup, as is Leeds, Sheffield, and Newcastle, while elsewhere in the UK, the stars will travel to Glasgow, Birmingham, London, and several other major locations.
BetMGM Premier League Darts is to be held on Thursday 8 April at the AO Arena in Manchester, and to avoid being disappointed, fans are advised to register for presale ticket access.
Following a successful season of events in 2026, tickets are expected to be like gold-dust, so don’t say you haven’t been warned.
To access the first wave of tickets, fans must become an active PDCTV Annual Member before 23:59pm on Friday 9 October. Alternatively, general sale is on Thursday 22 October 2026, but make sure not to hang about.
Featured Image – Sandro Halank (via Wikimedia Commons)
Sport
Andy Burnham wants to scrap the ‘unfair’ ban on drinking alcohol in football stands
Emily Sergeant
Andy Burnham has claimed he wants to scrap the ‘unfair’ ban on fans getting to drink alcohol in football stands.
It’s a ban that’s been in place in the top five tiers of men’s football since 1985, when fears over violence and hooliganism were at their height, but now the Prime Minister has raised the question of whether drinking in football stands – or ‘drinking in sight / view of the pitch’, as it’s known formally – is actually unjust, due to the fact that same rules don’t apply to fans of other sports.
“I don’t think it’s fair for football fans to be singled out in that way,” Andy Burnham has declared this week, grabbing headlines in the process.
He continued: “I think that legislation dates to an era where football was very different, and I do believe there is a case to remove that discrimination.
“I’m not going to back away from what’s been a long-held view of mine. I don’t see how it can be fair that some supporters of one sport can be treated differently.”
The Prime Minister’s comments have been met with mixed response.
Andy Burnham wants to scrap the ‘unfair’ ban on drinking alcohol in football stands / Credit: James Kirkup | Julia Nastogadka (via Unsplash)
The Football Supporters’ Association (FSA), for example, has very much welcomed the idea, saying that it ‘totally agrees’ the legislation is ‘outdated’ and ‘deserves to be reviewed’.
Tom Greatrex, chair of the FSA, said in a statement: “The FSA has always argued that it’s unfair to criminalise football fans for having a pint while watching the match – especially since you can sit in the same seat drinking alcohol whilst watching an Oasis gig or rugby league.”
However, on the flip side, the UK Football Policing Unit said it would be ‘incredibly rash’ to change the rules without proper consultation.
“Other sports simply don’t see the violence and criminal behaviour from their supporters that football does, albeit a minority, with alcohol often playing a significant part in violent and disorderly behaviour,” it said in a statement on the matter.
The Prime Minister did state in his initial proposition though that ‘there are different ways it could be done’, hinting that it could be done ‘on a trial basis’ perhaps.
The English Football League (EFL) added that it would be ‘receptive to discussions around reviewing current legislation and permitting alcoholic drinks within view of the pitch’.
No formal details on a review have been confirmed as of yet, so fans are encouraged to stay tuned for updates in due course.
Danny Jones -
16th November 2022 
