The prohibition of alcohol in Muslim countries is well known, so they simply have fixed rules. It’s no different in Qatar, where the World Cup will start on Sunday. Two days before the opening match, he even canceled the sale of beer originally allowed in stadiums. Especially for Europeans, this is not a good thing.
This information reached me in Vienna, before my flight to Doha. When they announced at Schwechat Airport that the plane was about to board, I finished a third of Heineken and thought to myself: This is my last beer in a long time.
It wasn’t. Beer was surprisingly available on board the Qatar Airways Airbus A320. This is how my colleagues, journalists from European countries, enjoyed each other and celebrated a successful championship. Just as we were flying over the Iraqi capital Baghdad.
When the plane landed on the runway in Doha, it became our long-taboo national drink. The only place where beer can be consumed in public with impunity is the Fan Festival. So a giant fanzone for the fans. But 12 quid of beer? There is no way.
“Not having draft beer in stadiums during the championship is strange. For you Europeans, probably completely incomprehensible. But I advise you to obey the ban,” laughed the taxi driver who took me from the airport to the hotel. Yep, I’m really not going to risk five years in prison over a bargain-hunting beer sipped on a bench overlooking Doha Bay.
I have to say check in at the airport was a breeze, lots of staff everywhere, ready to give advice. One of the volunteers, there are thousands in Qatar, took my suitcase and led me to a taxi outside the airport lobby. When I left Prague, it was slightly above freezing. In Doha? 29 degrees at midnight. Headshot, the European Championship is not ready. And a clear sign that the weather will struggle during the championship…
Robert Neumann
Football editor Robert Neumann has been involved in sports journalism since 2003. He has been writing for Právo and Sport.cz for eight years. He was at the world championships, at the European championships, he regularly reports on the matches of Czech clubs in the league and on the European scene. He was a professional footballer, worked for Bohemians, Jablonec and Liberec, with which he won the championship in 2002.
