February 11 – Arsenal and AC Milan qualified for the semi-finals of the Al Kass International Cup in Doha, Qatar. Arsenal, who survived everything their Argentine opponents could throw at them – including punches and kicks at the final whistle – will meet either Paris St Germain or holders Aspire International in the next round on Friday. AC Milan will meet either Real Madrid or Sao Paulo.
By Andrew Warshaw
November 13 – Qatar is failing to make fast enough progress in dealing with the ill-treatment of migrant workers, Amnesty International has warned in a fresh report. Six months after the 2022 World Cup hosts laid down plans for major reforms, Amnesty says few concrete steps have been taken.
November 10 – Qatar’s Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy (SC) has donated $500,000 to the Kakuma project in Kenya.
By David Owen
October 24 – A top United States Olympic official has offered encouragement for Qatar’s emergence as a host of sports events, provided climate issues are adequately managed.
By Paul Nicholson in Paris
October 8 – The Aspire Zone Foundation has released outline detail of a development plan that will more than double the size of its current 250-acre Aspire Zone geographical footprint.
October 7 – The Italian Super Cup final between last winners Serie A champions Juventus and Coppa Italia winners Naples will be played later this year in Qatar, it was announced yesterday at the Aspire Global Summit in Paris.
By Paul Nicholson
October 2 – With the world watching out for the safety and welfare of the migrant labour, construction of stadia for the Qatar 2022 World Cup has begun in earnest with the Supreme Committee for delivery and Legacy revealing that it is at different stages of build on five stadiums.
By Andrew Warshaw
September 5 – Human rights organisations have renewed their offensive against 2022 World Cup hosts Qatar, this time after the apparent disappearance in the Gulf state of two British researchers probing workers’ rights. Krishna Upadhyaya and photographer Ghimire Gundev reportedly arrived in Qatar on August 27 to research a forthcoming report on the conditions of Nepalese migrant workers but there are fears they may have since been detained according to the body that employs them,
By Andrew Warshaw
June 5 – In a robust and passionate defence of his moral conduct as UEFA president, Michel Platini has denounced what he claims is a deliberate campaign to discredit him and says that despite all the allegations over Qatar staging the 2022 World Cup, the decision was the right one for football.
By Andrew Warshaw and Paul Nicholson
June 1 – Qatar’s 2022 World Cup organisers have been quick to respond to the explosive allegations of corruption published by English newspaper the Sunday Times, saying that the bid committee broke no rules and that Mohamed bin Hammam was not part of the bid team. FIFA’s chief investigator Michael Garcia is meeting Qatar 2022 bid officials today as part of his on-going investigation of the conduct of all the bidding member associations.
By Andrew Warshaw
June 1 – FIFA vice-president Jim Boyce says the most explosive allegations to date linked to Qatar being awarded the 2022 World Cup must be added to the investigation into the entire bidding process being conducted by FIFA’s corruption buster, Michael Garcia.
By Andrew Warshaw
May 14 – Qatar authorities have made the most forceful pledge to date that they will scrap part of the country’s medieval kafala employment system that has caused so much outrage directed at the 2022 World Cup hosts – but stopped short of abolishing it completely.
By Andrew Warshaw in Jordan
May 13 – Qatari authorities are set to make a landmark announcement on the contentious issue of workers rights within the next few days, possibly as early as Wednesday, as pressure continues to build on the 2022 World Cup hosts over the treatment of migrant employees.
By Andrew Warshaw
April 22 – Qatar’s 2022 World Cup organisers are reported to have agreed to radically scale back the number of stadiums being built for the tournament, possibly by up to one third.
April 10 – Stenden University Qatar (SUQ) is teaming up with Edinburgh Napier University for a two-year project titled ‘Leveraging the 2022 Qatar World Football Cup for the promotion of green and active living: A multiple stakeholder evaluation of strategic options’.