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World Cup 2022
Football fans stand beneath a giant banner depicting the Saudi national flag as they attend the World Cup 2022 Asian qualifying match between Palestine and Saudi Arabia in the town of al-Ram in the West Bank on October 15, 2019. (Ahmad GHARABLI/AFP)
October 16, 2019, 2:54 am
Heavy on rain, light on goals, Saudi soccer 1st draws Palestinian crowds, pride
Estimated 12,000-13,000 fans cram into West Bank stadium, deride notion that Saudi kingdom’s participation in match constitutes normalization with Israel
By Adam Rasgon
Team Saudi Arabia celebrates after Saudi Arabia's Hassan Altambakti scored his side's second goal during the Group E U20 World Cup soccer match between Saudi Arabia and Mali in Gdynia, Poland, May 28, 2019. (Darko Vojinovic/AP)
October 7, 2019, 7:05 pm
Saudi soccer team to play Palestine in West Bank
PA President Abbas said to invite Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to watch next week’s World Cup qualifier
By AFP and TOI staff
A general view shows the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha on September 26, 2019, ahead of the IAAF World Athletics Championships. (Photo by Giuseppe CACACE / AFP)
October 6, 2019, 7:09 am
Sparse crowds, high heat at Doha track meet spark worries of World Cup woes
Sight of empty stadiums and collapsing runners at World Athletics Championships spooks some, but organizers insist Gulf country can host soccer’s biggest show
By Gregory WALTON
A picture taken on September 25, 2019 shows a plastic model of the Ras Abu Aboud Stadium, one of the venues for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, in the capital Doha. (GIUSEPPE CACACE / AFP)
September 27, 2019, 6:45 am
Gay, transgender fans ‘welcome’ at 2022 World Cup, says Qatar
LGBT issues are sensitive in Qatar, and homosexual acts are still illegal
By AFP
FIFA President Gianni Infantino after the final match between Ukraine and South Korea at the U20 soccer World Cup in Lodz, Poland, June 15, 2019. (AP/Darko Vojinovic)
June 21, 2019, 12:31 pm
FIFA president tells Iran to let women watch World Cup qualifiers
Gianni Infantino says Tehran has reneged on previous commitments to allow females into games, demands steps to ensure they are able to attend matches
By AP
Former UEFA President Michel Platini is seen on a giant screen as he delivers a speech at a UEFA meeting in Athens, on September 14, 2016. (AP/Thanassis Stavrakis)
June 18, 2019, 1:45 pm
Former UEFA head Platini arrested over award of 2022 World Cup to Qatar
One-time soccer star who was suspended by FIFA in 2015 held as part of bribery investigation
By John Leicester and Samuel Petrequin
FIFA President Gianni Infantino at a press conference following the FIFA Council Meetings in Miami, Florida, on March 15, 2019. (RHONA WISE / AFP)
March 19, 2019, 1:21 pm
Experts: FIFA World Cup plan would stoke Gulf tensions
Analysts say global body’s move to add 12 teams to 2022 soccer championships would be bad power politics
By David Harding
In this October 31, 2018 picture men perform modernization work on the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha, Qatar (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
December 28, 2018, 4:07 pm
New York rabbi says he is advising Qatar on welcoming Jews to the 2022 World Cup
Marc Schneier tells Bloomberg News he was asked by head of soccer tourney’s organizing committee to consult on how to accommodate Jewish visitors
By JTA
In this Saturday, April 7, 2012 file photo, the new high-rise buildings of downtown Doha, photographed in the background as Qatari women and a man walk by the sea in Doha, Qatar. (AP/Kamran Jebreili)
November 13, 2018, 4:55 am
Tiny Qatar may have Iran host World Cup teams in 2022
Blockaded by neighbors, Doha says it is exploring letting other countries house some squads for major soccer tournament
By AFP
Construction work under way at the Khalifa Stadium in Doha, Qatar, November 9, 2014. (Rob Harris/AP)
June 4, 2018, 12:18 pm
Qatar soccer World Cup in question as FIFA mulls expanding tournament
Governing body considers increasing participating squads from 32 to 48, which could force isolated state to share event with neighbors
By David Harding
Qatari Minister of Municipality and Environment Mohammad Bin Abdullah Mitaab Al-Rumaihi, right, Secretary-General of the Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee Hassan al-Thawadi, center, and Saad bin Ahmad Al Muhannadi President of the Public Works Authority 'Ashghal attend the inauguration of the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy's Tree Nursery in Doha, on February 22, 2018. (AFP/KARIM JAAFAR)
February 25, 2018, 9:08 am
Qatar could be stripped of 2022 World Cup, Saudi minister claims
Turki al-Sheikh suggests England or US host soccer tournament if FIFA decides to take away hosting duties from Gulf state
By Michael Bachner
Dhahi Khalfan, Dubai's police chief (Screen capture: YouTube)
October 10, 2017, 6:50 am
Outspoken Dubai security chief urges Qatar to give up 2022 World Cup
Dhahi Khalfan, who railed last year against Jewish ‘control’ of America and other anti-Semitic conspiracies, says Qatar can’t afford to host the soccer championship
By Jon Gambrell
In this file photo from May 14, 2010, a Qatari woman walks in front of the city skyline in Doha, Qatar. (AP Photo/Kamran Jebreili, File)
October 9, 2017, 12:30 pm
Dubai police chief urges Qatar to give up World Cup to end crisis
Doha says ‘no risk’ soccer tournament will not go ahead in country after tweets from outspoken UAE security official
By Jon Gambrell
The entrance to the Doha City Center shopping mall in the Qatari capital, Doha, November 24, 2015. Qatar's only directly elected body is to vote on introducing family-only days at major shopping malls in a move dubbed a "bachelor ban" that is likely to restrict access for foreign laborers. (Photo by AFP Photo/STR)
November 25, 2015, 12:55 pm
Qatar mulls family-only mall days
Controversial law would restrict access for foreign laborers; human rights groups call the move ‘segregation by stealth’
By David Harding and Ibrahim Badawy
FIFA President Sepp Blatter speaks during a press conference at the FIFA headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland, Tuesday, June 2, 2015. (Ennio Leanza/Keystone via AP)
October 8, 2015, 3:09 pm
FIFA suspends chiefs Blatter, Platini for 90 days
Decision may end Platini’s bid for scandal-ridden soccer body’s presidency in February’s emergency election
By AP
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