“Lack of tickets” forces large numbers of “Al-Abyad” fans to leave Doha

Large numbers of fans of the national team began preparing to follow the historic confrontation that the “Whites” will play tomorrow against Qatar at the conclusion of the Asian continent’s qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, while at the same time, yesterday, large numbers of fans left the Qatari capital, Doha, due to the scarcity and unavailability of tickets for the decisive match.

The UAE national team achieved a costly victory over its Omani counterpart, two goals to one, the day before yesterday, at Jassim bin Hamad Stadium, making the team on the cusp of qualifying for the 2026 World Cup in America, Canada and Mexico.

A win or draw guarantees that “Al-Abyad” will obtain a ticket to qualify for the World Cup, especially since it leads the competition with three points, compared to Qatar and Oman having a point each.

The fans of the UAE national team presented a wonderful artistic painting against Oman after the stands designated for the Emirati fans in Jassim bin Hamad Stadium were filled, as since the end of the confrontation against Al-Ahmar, the most prominent question for the fans in Doha is how to obtain tickets for the decisive match against Qatar.

The number of tickets allocated to the Emirati audience during the Al-Abyad match against the Qatari national team at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium is only about 1,000 seats, after the Asian Football Confederation allocated only 8% of the stadium’s seating capacity for the Emirati audience in this match specifically, knowing that the stadium’s capacity is about 15,000 seats, while the rest of the seats in the stadium will be at the disposal of the Asian Football Confederation.

On the other hand, the number of Emirati fans’ tickets for the national team’s match against the Omani national team was only about 4,500 tickets.

The UAE Football Association provided an ideal solution after large numbers of “White” fans flocked to Doha, exceeding the number of tickets allocated to the public against Oman, by providing giant screens allocated by the Federation free of charge to Emirati fans in the Radisson Blu Hotel (Joanna Hall) and the Sheraton Hotel (Al Majlis Hall).

Al-Ittihad is scheduled to once again provide giant screens to the public who will not be able to follow the match from inside the stadium, as unprecedented preparations are being prepared for the upcoming confrontation.

For his part, Emirati fan Abdul Rahman Al-Akbari told “Emirates Al-Youm” that he dreams of having the opportunity to watch the historic match that brings together the UAE against Qatar from the stadium, explaining: “I leave Doha to return to the country after watching the national team’s match against Oman, and my heart is set on returning again to watch the team’s match against Qatar.”

He added: “We know that the tickets provided for the UAE fans are few, but we will see what can happen during the hours before the match.”

He pointed out that the Emirati fans went through difficult times in the team’s match against Oman, and said: “The match scenario was very difficult, especially since the team conceded an early goal, while the players did not perform well in the first half, before the team was able to score two goals, so joy spread in the stands of the Emirati audience.”

For his part, fan Saeed Al-Siyabi said that he would not be able to watch the national team’s match against Qatar, because he did not have a ticket to enter the match, stressing to “Emirates Al-Youm” that he was ready to attend at any moment if tickets were available for the Emirati audience.

He added: “We lived a wonderful and happy night after the dramatic victory over Oman, as the details of the match were difficult, and although the minutes passed and some fans felt despair, the equalizer restored our hopes, before the joy began after the team scored the second goal.”

He continued: “The team will play a difficult match against Qatar, but we trust the players’ abilities, and we hope that the audience will get additional tickets. However, we will support the team in all available ways, whether from inside or outside the country, and we hope that celebrations will begin after the match with the team’s qualification for the World Cup.”

• Only 1,000 seats are the number of tickets allocated to the Emirati audience during the “White” match against the Qatari national team.

• 15,000 seat capacity at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, which hosts the UAE-Qatar match in Doha.

• The number of Emirati fans’ tickets for the national team’s match against the Omani national team reached about 4,500 tickets.