



"We have a new generation coming to the stadiums," Marzouq said.

It isn't always like this at soccer — or any other sport in Qatar — despite the ruling family's thirst for bidding for elite events.


"In every event there are lessons learned," said Dahlan Al Hamad, vice president of the local organizing committee. "You cannot build the fan in one day, you have to engage them in the sport, they have to know the system of the sport, they have to have their athletes and know about their lives.

"We are really increasing the number of fans," he said. "If you could just compare today compared to 10 years ago you know, the fans here in Doha, it would be totally different than here."

Just like FIFA's contentious decision to grant the 2022 World Cup to Qatar, this was the first time the showpiece event on the track calendar had been awarded to the Middle East. The sparsely attended competition reignited concerns about Qatar's ability to fill the eight stadiums that have been built from scratch or completely renovated to meet FIFA's standards.

"People love (soccer) here," said Al Sadd coach Xavi Hernandez, a World Cup-winning midfielder with Spain in 2010. "They are crazy for (soccer)."

Xavi is helping to promote Qatar's soccer credentials to a world skeptical of the choice of location for sport's premier quadrennial event. He also does damage control — the World Cup bidding process and the conditions for migrant workers building the event's infrastructure are two hot-button topics.

FIFA is counting on rabid fans to travel no matter where the world's most popular sporting event is held because this World Cup faces challenges others haven't.



Finding a beer won't be easy. Many hotels are dry and only one shop in the country sells booze to locally-based foreigners with employer approval.


Fans will not be able to do easily is hop across on a plane to the sprawling tourist resorts of Dubai, unless the United Arab Emirates and its regional allies restore diplomatic, economic and travel ties with Qatar that were severed in 2017 over allegations denied by Doha that it supports extremism.


"You have to understand the political challenges this country faces right now, which was never envisaged when this meeting was awarded," IAAF chief executive Jon Ridgeon said.



The Metro line is still being completed to reach the stadium at Lusail, where workers are toiling in heat often exceeding 40 degrees Celsius (104 F) to complete the 80,000-seat venue for the opening game and final in a city that didn't exist when Qatar won the FIFA vote in 2010. A small shelter where the center circle will be offers respite from the fierce sun but not the humidity.




"A lion starts small but then he becomes big and the king of the jungle," he said. "That's what we will be. We need to bring more people into Qatar so they can learn about Arabic culture."



The next major test is when Qatar hosts FIFA's Club World Cup this December and the following year as a testing ground for the sport's biggest event.

"It will be beautiful. It will be wonderful to see the World Cup in Qatar if you like football," said Michel Platini, the former FIFA vice president who voted for Qatar and was later banned in an unconnected financial scandal. "Football is more popular than track and field."