Fans take in opening day at mall rooftop ‘stadium’
Amall in Dubai has refurbished its rooftop to give families looking to enjoy the World Cup football vibes together the perfect spot to catch all the excitement.
The City Centre Etisalat by E& Mirdif Stadium,located on the roof of City Centre Mirdif was buzzing with excitement on the opening day of the World Cup. The venue features a dual-match screening zone, food and beverage zones, footballthemed activations, kid-friendly activities and shisha lounges.
With games and ceremonies being broadcast in Arabic, most of those attending the opening ceremony and first match on Sunday were Arab families living in Dubai.
Waseem Duba and his friend Loay Hamami came to the zone straight after work. “We saw the ads and decided to come to check it out. The vibe here is great!” said Duba. They were both rooting for Qatar on the opening night.
Younis Salim, who was there with friends, said they were happy to watch the games with others in an exciting venue instead of at home. “We're also planning to go watch some games in Doha; we have tickets for games taking place during the National Day holiday,” said Salim,
proudly showing his Hayya card.
Inas Sedky, a Libyan living in Dubai, was there with her family of four children nearly two hours before the opening ceremony began. “We are all rooting for different teams. We often come to the mall and we love this zone. We are very happy to be seeing an event like this organised by an Arab country,” she said, adding that they were waiting for more family members to come.
Another family from Sudan, who are Dubai residents, said that before coming to the fan zone, they signed up their older child with Al Nasr Club. “We are all football enthusiasts rooting for different teams,” said the mother, Abrar Mohammad.
From Jordan, Nadia Al Shobaky and her husband Damen Al Shobaky said they were there with the entire family. “We are rooting for Qatar because we can see the amount of effort that was put into organising this event. It really does make us all, as Arabs, very proud,” said Nadia, adding that, time permitting, they plan to return to the mall venue to watch future games. “We will always root for the Arab teams,” she said.
The City Centre Etisalat by E& Mirdif Stadium will be open from 1pm to 1am daily until December 18. Entry is free till early December but will be ticketed for the the Round of 16 matches from December 3 onwards.