SANTA CLARA – Qatar were the worst team at their own World Cup, possessing the poorest goal difference of the teams that lost every match. They have avoided that feat already. In the end 100 or so yards away from goalscorer Boualem Khoukhi, several hundred supporters in national dress thrashed up and down. Many neutrals had already left, desperate to beat the famous post-match traffic. That goal was for the real ones.
For Qatar, this was a match of two distinct hypocrisies. When they were awarded the 2022 tournament, Fifa’s oft-repeated claim was their wish to grow the game globally and facilitate the development of new footballing powers. What better way to do that than by hosting the tournament?
Which, quite frankly, has been proven hogwash. The Qatari Stars League is the natural home of a few players you’ve not thought about in a couple of years – Roberto Firmino, Pablo Sarabia, Marco Verratti, Aleksandar Mitrovic – and has been surpassed for gold-plating by Saudi Arabia.
The national team has declined badly since winning the Asian Cup in 2023. In their last six matches before this tournament, Qatar lost four (Ireland, Tunisia, Palestine, Zimbabwe) and drew two (Syria and El Salvador). They scored two goals in those six games.
