Doha: The Qatari government has banned the sale of beer in stadiums during World Cup 2022 football matches but is still allowing the purchase of alcohol in specialized fan zones, FIFA said on Friday.
“Following discussions between host country authorities and FIFA, a decision has been made to focus the sale of alcoholic beverages on the FIFA Fan Festival, other fan destinations and licensed venues, removing sales points of beer from Qatar’s FIFA World Cup 2022 stadium perimeters,” FIFA said on Twitter.
Non-alcoholic beer sales will remain available, a statement added.
Qatar has faced a flurry of criticism during preparations for this football tournament. International human rights organizations accused the Qatari authorities of violating the rights of migrant workers, and the football community was not pleased with the decision to hold the World Cup in the winter, and not in the summer as usual, as well as the introduction of a number of prohibitions and restrictions, including on public displays of feelings, loud noises and music, and of homosexuality.
The FIFA World Cup will take place from November 21 to December 18 in Doha.
