Amir welcomes all; the beautiful game begins
From Qatar, from an Arab country, I welcome everyone to the FIFA World Cup 2022: Amir
Qatar’s 12-year dream came into life yesterday in a short but sparkling opening ceremony as His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani patronised the occasion as the FIFA World Cup kicked off at the Al Bayt Stadium.
His Highness the Amir, in his address to the 67,372 crowd present at the tentshaped venue and billions watching on TV, welcomed the world to the football showpiece event, the first to be staged in the Middle East and Arab world.
“From Qatar, from an Arab country, I welcome everyone to the World Cup 2022. We have worked hard, along with many people, to make it one of the most successful tournaments. We have exerted all efforts and invested for the good of all humanity,” he said.
“Finally, we have reached the opening day, the day that you have been eagerly waiting for. Starting from this evening, and for a period of twentyeight days, we will follow, and with us the whole world, God willing, the great football festival, in this spacious ambience for human and civilised communication,” the Amir added.
“People of different races, nationalities, faiths and orientations will gather here in Qatar, and around screens on all continents to share the same exciting moments.
“How beautiful it is for people to put aside what divides them in order to celebrate their diversity and what brings them together at the same time.
“I wish all the participating teams a magnificent football performance, high sportsmanship, and a time full of joy, excitement and delight for you all. And let there be days that are inspiring with goodness and hope. “Welcome and good luck to all.” The opening ceremony, which ran for 30 minutes, was attended by His Highness the Father Amir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, His Highness Personal Representative of the Amir Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad alThani, His Highness Sheikh Abdullah bin Khalifa al-Thani, His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Khalifa al-Thani, HE Sheikh Jassim bin Khalifa al-Thani, HE the Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin Abdulaziz al-Thani, HE the Speaker of the Shura Council Hassan bin Abdullah al-Ghanem, and a number of Sheikhs and ministers.
The opening ceremony was also attended by leaders of friendly countries, heads of the diplomatic missions accredited to the state and senior sports officials.
The opening ceremony amazed the thousands in attendance and billions watching around the globe. Narrated by Academy Award-winning actor Morgan Freeman and featuring Jung Kook from Korean supergroup BTS, the ceremony showcased Qatari culture and heritage while highlighting football’s ability to unite people from different countries and cultures.
A host of special guests from Qatar took part in the ceremony, including Ghanem al-Muftah, Dana and Fahad al-Kubaisi – and they were joined by hundreds of performers and tournament volunteers.
The ceremony featured eight distinct parts, culminating with giant jerseys from all 32 participating nations, every mascot in FIFA World Cup history, including the Qatar 2022 version La’eeb, and a huge inflatable emblem. Conceived as a joyous and contemporary one-of-a-kind spectacle with an important unifying message, the ceremony was produced by Executive Artistic Director, Ahmed al-Baker, CEO of Katara Studios, with support from Creative Director, Marco Balich, and Artistic Director, Anghela Alo.
The ceremony presented a contemporary global show that carried an important message from Arabs to the whole world, extending an invitation to unify humanity, and bridge the gaps between all differences based on race, culture, colour and nationality through acceptance, respect and coexistence, with the World Cup serving as one tribe connecting peoples and the earth as a homeland for all.
The show fused Qatari traditions with the global culture through seven dazzling performances.
The ceremony symbolically presented two bridges made of light, representing the significance of connecting the people’s vastly distanced ideologies through dialogue and understanding to reach coexistence.
One of the highlights was ‘To Know One Another’, in which legendary actor Morgan Freemen talks with Qatar’s Ghanem al-Muftah, who represents the new generations in the region, each of them standing on a lit bridge that expresses different points of view and different opinions. The two sides get engaged in a high level dialogue where misconceptions, that lead to applying double standards and hasty judgments, are corrected through dialogue which refers to the Qur’anic Ayah “O mankind, indeed We have created you from male and female and made you peoples and tribes that you may know one another”.
The two bridges get united by a visual display symbolizing acceptance, respect and coexistence.
Qatar’s story with football was told in the sixth performance, entitled ‘Dream’, through a visual historical narrative that shows how the dream was rooted in the heart of this country from the beginning, and then culminated in hosting some of the biggest events in the world, including the World Cup.
At the end of the video, His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad alThani hands a jersey to His Highness the Father Amir to autograph it as a symbol of legacy.
Footage from this historical video was displayed for the first time, showing His Highness the Father Amir and a group of his friends who have contributed to building this country, playing football.
At the end of the ceremony, the various elements of the ceremony come together: team jerseys, tournament mascots, actors and performers with a selected group of fans from all over the world, reliving the feeling of celebrating the championship in an absolutely unforgettable way in a spectacular wrapup, for the sky to get lit by a dazzling firework show.
How beautiful it is for people to put aside what divides them in order to celebrate their diversity and what brings them together at the same time: Amir
His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani participated yesterday in the Executive Summit of the International Federation of Football Associations (FIFA), chaired by FIFA President Gianni Infantino, at Fairmont Doha Hotel.
At the beginning of the summit, a film recounting glimpses of the history of the FIFA World Cup tournaments was shown, after which Infantino delivered a speech where he welcomed the attendees and congratulated Qatar on hosting the tournament.
The Amir delivered a speech in which he welcomed FIFA officials, heads of national football federations and legends of the game, wishing them success in the work of the summit. After that, the Amir received a souvenir from the FIFA president.
The summit was attended by His Highness Personal Representative of the Amir Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad alThani, in addition to several senior officials in the country and national football federations.