Iraq – Football fans swarm cafes to watch 2022 World Cup opening ceremony and first match

Location: Baghdad – Iraq
Language: Arabic
Duration: 00:04:02
Sound: natural
Source: A24 in Baghdad
Restrictions: A24 subscribers
Date: 11/20/2022

Storyline:

Cafes in Iraqi capital Baghdad were packed with football fans, who gathered to watch the 2022 World Cup opening ceremony and opening match between Qatar and Ecuador held at Al Bayt Stadium, which is located 40 km north of the Qatari capital, Doha.

Football fans, who await the World Cup every 4 years, expressed their happiness, praising the State of Qatar for its outstanding organization of the event.

The 2022 World Cup tournament began on Sunday in Qatar, and will continue until December 18, with the participation of 32 teams. The matches will be held in 8 world-class stadiums. Participating teams were divided into 8 groups, 4 teams in each group, from different continents of the world.

Shotlist

• Soundbite (Karrar Hussein – Iraqi citizen):
  “The World Cup is the largest sporting event in the world. We hope other Arab countries follow Qatar’s lead and host international stars on Arab land. We are proud of Qatar for organizing the 2022 World Cup with excellence, and building high-quality stadiums. We wish Qatar success and prosperity. We wish Arab teams success. I believe there are some Arab countries easily capable of hosting the World Cup including UAE and Saudi Arabia.”
• Soundbite (Hamad Tariq – Iraqi citizen):
  “I feel proud that an Arab country is hosting the World Cup for the first time in the Middle East. The opening ceremony represents a distinctive mixture of authentic Arab heritage and Arab nomadism. The stadiums were designed by Arabs, they are wonderful architectural masterpieces. Attendance is great and diverse. This is a remarkable historical event.”
• Soundbite (Ali Al-Amiri – Iraqi citizen):
  “This is a wonderful tournament. We hope the Iraqi Federation will host the next World Cup in Iraq.”