DUBAI (Dispatches) - Qatar will only allow people fully vaccinated against COVID-19 to attend next year’s World Cup and is in talks to secure one million doses in case global immunization efforts lag, the prime minister said.
The Persian Gulf state hosts the four-week tournament in November 2022 and the president of global soccer body FIFA has said the matches would be held in full stadiums.
Prime Minister Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin Abdulaziz Al Thani told newspapers that while most countries were expected to have vaccinated their citizens by then, Qatar was still taking measures to ensure a successful event.
“We are currently negotiating with a company to provide one million doses of COVID-19 vaccines in order to immunize and vaccinate some of those coming to Qatar,” he said in remarks also carried by state news agency QNA late on Sunday, without.