SUPPORTERS heading to the World Cup will fork out almost £200-a-night to stay in “cabins” that resemble a glorified shipping container.
The biggest event in football hits Qatar next month but supporters heading to the Middle East to stay in the Fan Village will find themselves packed in like sardines.
Accommodation has been one of the main issues for England fans and their respective counterparts from other nations ahead of the big kick-off.
Fifa World Cup Qatar 2022 officials have today announced that 30,000 rooms have been added to accommodation offerings with just over 30 days until the opening game, according to The Peninsula.
These range from apartments, villas, cruise ship hotels, hotels and the fan villages.
However, Bloomberg have revealed what the current state of the latter is – and you could be forgiven for thinking you were looking at a shipping dock rather than the tournament’s official fan village.
The Qatar 2022 website describes it as: “Fan Village Cabins Zafaran offer a choice of a double or twin en-suite bedroom, sleeping up to two people. Amenities in each cabin include tea and coffee making facilities, two bottles of water per day, a fridge, bed linen and bathroom towels.
“The village’s on-site facilities include a number of food outlets offering a range of cuisines.
“Just a short distance away are Lusail Shooting Club, Losail International Circuit and Lusail Stadium. The nearest metro station gives guests the opportunity to explore tourist sites, including Katara beach and cultural village, West Bay, Souq Waqif and Msheireb Downtown Doha.”
Any England, or any other fans wishing to attend and stay there, will have to fork out £183-a-night per unit.
The official computerised images used to advertise the accommodation does provide an insight into how cramped the conditions will be – but Bloomberg’s aerial shot gives a much greater view of exactly how tight it will get.
The photo was taken last month after the author of the article spotted what they thought were “shipping containers” – and they go on to recommend it “if you’re willing to take a chance on an adventure” but warns against it if you want to be sure “you’ll get a good night’s sleep”.
Qatar will welcome around 1.2m visitors next month and now they at least have an additional 30,000 rooms to choose from if they don’t fancy living on top of each other at the fan village.
Supreme Committee for Delivery &Legacy Director General, Eng. Yasir Al Jamal, said: “There is a high demand for accommodation, especially among the group stages.
“We have sold around 2 million room nights throughout the tournament, and I’m happy to announce that an additional 30,000 rooms have been added to the Accommodation Agency platform.
“That’s equivalent to around 1 million room nights in line with the last minute ticket sales.”
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Fans heading to Qatar will be able to drink for up to 19 HOURS a day at the official fan festival.
There will also be a fan zone curated by Arcadia, hosts of the spectacular arena which features at the Glastonbury Festival.
But a pint won’t come cheap – with a beer expected to cost £8 – and special “sobering up” tents have been announced for those deemed to be too tipsy.
Another issue for fans to watch out for is taking their tops off.
Those who strip off have been warned they face being slapped with a hefty fine.
England begin their World Cup campaign against Iran on November 21.
They then take on USA on November 25 before their final group clash with Wales four days later.
