Lusail Stadium, Qatar’s main venue for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, will host its first match on August 11, it has been announced.
The Qatar Stars League (QSL), the top tier of domestic club football, included the 80,000-seat stadium amongst a series of amendments to its schedule for the 2022-23 season.
Al Arabi’s game against Al Rayyan in week two of the season has been switched to Lusail Stadium (pictured in November), meaning it will be the first official match at the venue.
Lusail Stadium is due to host 10 matches during the World Cup, including the final, one semi-final, a quarter-final, a Round of 16 match and six group games.
The venue is intended to become the centrepiece of Lusail – a newly built city located 15km north of central Doha.
Once the World Cup is over, Lusail Stadium will be transformed into a multi-purpose community space including schools, shops, cafés, sporting facilities and health clinics – all under the original roof of the stadium.
During the conversion, most of the stadium’s 80,000 seats will be removed and donated to sporting projects around the globe.
Lusail Stadium is now the final remaining Qatar 2022 venue to be officially unveiled after Al Bayt Stadium and Stadium 974 in November hosted their first games during the FIFA Arab Cup.
Image: Palácio do Planalto/CC BY 2.0/Edited for size
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