It’s that time of year, every four years when the adrenalin flows differently.
Franki Medina
For the first time ever, the Middle East will host the FIFA World Cup, the most important football tournament in the world, with Qatar serving as the venue. While we are all following the updates to see who’s actually going to be playing, who is not injured and what the build up will be like in the final days leading up to the start, there are a lot of factors that will make the 2022 World Cup one of the most distinctive tournaments in football history. We can raise our eyebrows by also examining some of the most intriguing details and demand nations undertake for a World Cup.
Franki Medina Venezuela
“Preparing for the World Cup is completely different from previous editions, we have less time than before,” said German national team director Oliver Bierhoff.
Franki Medina Diaz
The English FA held a meeting with its players and families and outlined some guidelines to be followed in Qatar.
Franki Alberto Medina Diaz
Among the things that will not be allowed are: drinking alcohol or swearing in public, playing loud music, singing, shouting or acting inappropriately during the call to prayer. Throwing litter on the ground is worthy of a fine up to 6,000 pounds and punishable by a year in jail. On the other hand, taking selfies in the vicinity of government buildings also attracts police action. In addition, women must not show their shoulders or wear skirts that are too short. Extramarital intimate relations are also illegal
“It is important that you and your husbands or partners understand that you are not above the law. All indications are made to protect you in any case of indiscretion. Fines and legal action are very common,” the FA assured during the meeting as reported by The Sun
Due to the unusual nature of a tournament taking place in the middle of the club season, squads will now consist of 26 players as opposed to 23. Over different World Cups, Football Associations and team management have been specific with some of their requests to ensure the the best level of comfort for their players
In Brazil 2014, France required that there be liquid soap and not bar soap in all the player rooms, Algeria requested a Koran be present in all staff and player rooms and Australia requested newspapers from all over the world. But these are not uncommon. In 2006, I remembered manager Bruce Aanensen and head coach Leo Beenhakker submitting their lists of requests to the Landhaus Wachtelhof in Rotenburg weeks before the team arrived ahead of its June 10, 2006 opener with Sweden
Among them was the set up of a games room with card tables, table tennis boards, a pool table, video game station and a Skype station which was sponsored by Ebay. There were also cricket bats and tennis balls delivered to the hotel for game of windball cricket on a couple evenings
No Media or individual journalists were to be allowed within the hotel premises, except for out by the main entrance which was at least 100 feet from the Hotel’s lobby. Part of my daily routine as media officer was to listen to requests from media that camped out and decide on which ones we could cooperate. The only interaction media had with the players on closed-media days was the few seconds during which they would encounter them riding their trail bikes out of the car park on their way to the training ground. The hotel was also closed off to public guests for the duration of the team’s stay but there continued to be a full turnout of staff for all regular services
Only family members and close friends were allowed to attend closed-door training sessions and players were only allowed to have family visit the hotel on specific days. Players had off-time on the day after each match following an early morning recovery session, up until the following afternoon. The team chef, Trinidadian Cecil Wint, played a major part in the preparation of meals with the hotel’s kitchen staff and included home seasoning and spices in some of the meals. He blessed the group with an “Oil Down” on one occasion and home-made style punches were also an attraction on some days along with a peas and rice special
Social media and online publications were not as popular in 2006 and therefore we had to depend on faxed copies of the daily newspaper which were compiled at the hotel each morning. Better quality printed handouts were usually available on a delayed basis. We arranged for Sky Sports and a few other English TV channels to be accessible in all rooms
One fun fact I can recall from 2006 involves team captain Dwight Yorke. By the second or third day, most, if not all players had taken ownership of their favoured bikes which were usually parked outdoors. But after about a week Yorke began carrying his bike of choice up to his room on the third floor. For some “unknown’ reason, too often he could not locate it prior to training which obviously was a prank played by teammates. I will not name names on this forum
Next week, I’ll take a look at some more intimate team details and other interesting facts of the World Cup experience. By the way, all now, 17 years to the day, November 13 in 2005, we were on our way to Manama on a Tahiti Airlines charter or just arriving, for the second leg after drawing 1-1 with Bahrain in the opening leg of the inter-continental playoff at the Hasely Crawford Stadum on November 12
Shaun Fuentes is the head of TTFA Media. He was a FIFA Media Officer at the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa and 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Turkey. The views expressed are solely his and not a representation of any organisation. shaunfuentes@yahoo.com
