DOHA — A lack of affordable World Cup accommodation put many off making the trip to Qatar, and thousands who did travel ended up staying in neighbouring Middle East countries and getting shuttle flights in for games.
It was one of many reasons why so many felt Qatar was the most unsuitable World Cup host possible. But, in the end, for as little as £30 a night, you can get a bed in a twin room, with an ensuite bathroom and air conditioning, among thousands of colourful football fans in a small, self-contained complex.
There is a catch, though. You have to travel to the edge of the desert to get there.
“We stopped counting at 10,000 rooms,” one of the duty managers at Barwa Barahat Al Janoub accommodation complex tells i.
“Fifa organises it all through their accommodation site. We don’t even know how many rooms there are here. It is too big to work it out.”
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Welcome to this mini city, next to an abattoir, on the edge of Al Wakrah, 30 kilometres south of Doha, where supporters from all over the world have taken up residence to look after the pennies at the World Cup.
Fan villages in Doha have been much criticised for their basic features, but here, two hours from the farthest away stadium – a lifetime in this ultra-convenient tournament – there are 1,400 clusters of apartments from A to Z, supermarkets, food stalls, fake Starbucks, restaurants of various cuisines, coffee shops, big screens for matches, football pitches, sand volleyball courts and free face painting services.
The issue is where it is.
“We got back at 5am from Al Bayt the other night,” Cristian from Buenos Aires tells i. “The room is fine, but the location is really bad. Outside of this [the clusters] there is nothing. The bus to the metro is even 30 minutes.” Al Bayt is the most northerly stadium in Doha, where England play France, at 10pm local time, on Saturday night.
The bank balance is the real beneficiary for those staying out in this desert complex. Buses run to the airport, stadiums and to the metro station for free, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Not great news for the Uber drivers lining the perimeter waiting for jobs.
It is just, when journeying into central Doha, you go in once, and don’t come back until the end of the day. Once you have queued up for the buses, it is 30 minutes from the clusters to Al Wakra metro station – the end of the line.
“It is so much better than I thought it would be,” Gary from Melbourne, Australia tells i. “It is fun just hanging around here. I played football at 4am last night. Great fun.”
Matches between different nations take place on the football courts at night, given it is too hot to exercise out in the desert during the day. Brazil versus Argentina one night got so heated the goal post somehow got broken.
Even with the closest available alcohol in Doha, an hour away, the place is certainly is not lacking in atmosphere or colour. Music from different nations is blasted out of speakers, replica shirts are sold on the street, while fans from all over the world, and the most cheerful volunteers imaginable, pose for photographs with each other – what these international tournaments are really all about.
But, as is often the case with Qatar, even the most positive elements of this controversial World Cup have a downside.
The plan, sources close to the organising committee said, is to use complexes like this to house migrant workers after the tournament. 67,000 could be accommodated in Barwa Barahat, the source said. The reality is a different story.
“We were told it would be used for [migrant] workers,” another duty manager, who again wishes to remain nameless, tells i.
“But we were told there is no rush to move out after the World Cup is over, as they are not sure what will happen to it.”
For now, the World Cup rumbles on, with rooms still available for any fans wanting to join the party late. Just don’t expect to get anywhere in a hurry.
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