FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 - Stadiums

Qatar got the green light to host the FIFA World Cup in 2010. For the last 12 years, Qatar has been hard at work to construct the venues to hold and host spectacular football matches. A total of eight large capacity stadiums have been built to accommodate ocean of people that will flood to see their countries compete. Stadiums are all designed to be operational for the hectic FIFA World Cup 2022 schedule from November 20th till December 18th, 2022. All the stadiums are spectacular and situated relatively closer to each other. Following is a list of stadiums in Qatar and a brief description about them

Al Bayt Stadium:

Al Bayt Stadium will be the host of the opening match of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. between Qatar and Ecuador. It is scheduled to kick off on November 20, 2022. The stadium is estimated to be 35km away from Doha having a large capacity to hold 60,000 cheering fans. The stadium’s inauguration took place in November, 2021 for the opening ceremony of FIFA Arab Cup 2021. Out of all the stadiums present in Doha for the World Cup, it is the second largest stadium after Lusail Stadium.
Lusail Stadium:

Second stadium in line to host World Cup game is situated just 23km from Doha, in Lusail, Qatar. It currently is the largest stadium having a capacity of 80,000 people. The stadium was recently inaugurated in September, 2022 with the Lusail Super Cup game. Lusail Stadium received five stars for its design and construction from GSAS. Lusail Stadium also holds an importance because it is set to hold the final game of the tournament on December 18th, 2022.
Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium:

Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium or Al Rayyan Stadium is an all purpose stadium being prepared to host the coming matches. The previous stadium was demolished which only an excess of 20,000 seating capacity. Construction for this stadium began in 2016 and now it has a capacity to accommodate 44,470 people. Inauguration of the stadium happened 2 years before the World Cup in 2020, on Qatar’s national day. It is currently situated 20km west of central Doha.
Al Janoub Stadium

Al Janoub Stadium is a retractable roof football stadium situated in Al-Wakrah, Qatar that opened its doors on 16th of May, 2019. The stadium’s capacity for the duration of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 is set at 40,000 seats. After the World Cup, it will be downsized to 20,000 seats. It’s current location is 22km east of central Doha. Al Janoub Stadium hosted the 2020 AFC Champions League Final 2 years before the World Cup, in December 2020.
Al Thumama Stadium

Al Thumama Stadium is a football stadium situated in Al-Thumama, Qatar that opened its doors on 21st October, 2019. The Al Thumama Stadium is one of eight stadiums, which have been built for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. The stadium has a capacity of 40,000 seats. Following the World Cup, half of the stadium’s seats will be removed and will be donated to other countries, bringing the total seats to 20,000 after the World Cup is finalised. Its location is quite ideal – 12km south of central Doha.
Education City Stadium

Education City Stadium or known as Diamond in the Desert is a football stadium located in Al-Rayyan, Qatar. It’s location is within several university campuses at the Qatar Foundation’s Education City. Currently it has a capacity of 45,000 seats, but after the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 it is going to retain a 25,000 seat capacity. 20 percent of building materials used for the construction of this stadium are identified to be green, making this stadium among the world’s most environmentally sustainable stadiums. Its location is 13km north-west of central Doha.
Khalifa International Stadium

Khalifa International Stadium or National Stadium is a multipurpose stadium situated in the heart of Doha, Qatar as part of Doha’s Sport City Complex. It is one of the eight stadiums to host the 2022 World Cup games. In 2017, it received four-star rating from GSAS. It currently has a capacity to hold 45,000 people. When it was announced Qatar was going to host the World Cup, the plan was to convert the 45,000 seater to 68,000 seater but the plan was scraped. It’s located 5km west of central Doha.
Stadium 974

Stadium 974 is one of the eight stadiums constructed to host the FIFA World Cup 2022 which is set to kick off on November 20th, 2022. It is named Stadium 974 because it is made up of 974 recyclable shipping containers. It is the first temporary stadium to be built which is going to get dismantled after the World Cup will wrap up. It launched in November, 2021 a year before the tournament begins. It is situated 10km east of central Doha.