FIFA World Cup: 9,000 fans from Kolkata in Qatar, more to visit ahead of finals

A number of people are enquiring about the ticket, accommodation, and travel packages to Qatar ahead of the semi-finals and finals next week, the officials added.

“Around 10,000-12,000 football fans have traveled to Qatar from eastern India so far, including close to 9,000 people from Kolkata. People are still very keen to make it to the semis and the final, and we expect at least another 1,500 Kolkatans to visit the Arab country,” Anil Punjabi, eastern region head of Travel Agents Federation of India (TAFI), told news agency PTI.

The movement of fans is affected by the elimination of football giants like Brazil and Portugal in the quarter-finals, but Argentina’s football team also has a huge fan base in Kolkata and people will be traveling in the hope to see the historic win of their favorite team.

“It’s all about Messi this time as it will be his last world cup. I had made up my mind months ago that if Argentina progresses to the semis, I will head to Qatar. Who knows, I might actually see Messi lifting the coveted trophy, which would be an unreal experience,” Subham Mitra, a resident of Lake Gardens, said.

Argentina will take on Croatia in the first semi-finals on Wednesday. Senior officials of the federation believe that Qatar will become a significant tourist destination ahead of that.

“Kolkata’s football frenzy for this edition of the world cup has been unprecedented because of two main factors — direct flights to Qatar, and the urge to travel more post the COVID-19 pandemic, especially during major global events,” Punjabi said.

“Qatar wasn’t among the sought-after tourist spots before the mega event, but the sporting spectacle has added great value to the place and we expect that more and more people will add it to their must-visit list,” he added.

With inputs from PTI