According to Qatar Tourism reports, the country welcomed over 600,000 visitors in early November, less than two weeks before the FIFA World Cup™. The recently-held World Cup saw cheering fans travel across the globe to support their favourite teams, visiting the world-class tourism attractions on offer in Qatar.

Leading the latest tourism figures are visitors from Saudi Arabia (16% of total international arrivals), followed by India (8%), the USA (7%), the UK (6%) and Mexico (5%). Argentina, Egypt, Iran, France and Kuwait also make up the top 10 countries of origin for inbound international visitors.

As the first-ever nation in the Middle East to host the FIFA World Cup™, Qatar’s historic achievement for the region was followed by further wins and records. Up to the opening day on 20 November, 2.95 million tickets had been sold, revealed a FIFA spokesperson, comfortably exceeding Russia (2018) which sold just over 2.4 million tickets.

The Argentina-Mexico match in Lusail Stadium also saw the highest attendance on record at a FIFA World Cup™ match since 1994 with 88,966 attendees. Outside the stadiums, the mega-tournament has drawn in record-breaking numbers in TV viewership, across multiple markets.

No Football. No Worries.

Between matches, international visitors can take inspiration from Qatar Tourism’s latest campaign, No Football. No Worries. fronted by legendary Italian football star Andrea Pirlo. The campaign featured Pirlo heading to various Qatar attractions in a series of humorous advertisements. From the bustling streets of Souq Waqif to the stunning collections available at the Museum of Islamic Art, fans can follow Pirlo and enjoy a range of adventures in the heart of Doha.

At the same time, visitors can take part in the recently launched joint social media competition by Qatar Tourism and the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy (SC), for a chance to win a US$100,000 – terms and conditions apply – fans can snap and post their photos using the @VisitQatar handle and #UltimateQatarExperience hashtag, to win lucrative travel packages.

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