Things You Have No Idea about the 2022 World Cup Host City

And after living there for years, I can share with you

Picture I took while still living in Doha. (Author’s image rights)

The 2022 FIFA World Cup had its fair share of polemics. From the qualifying matches canceled hours before the start due to Covid restrictions to accusations of slave labor to build the host nation stadiums.

There is one question, however, that still puzzles many tourists and football fans planning to travel to Doha to attend the FIFA World Cup matches. A question that is frequently ignored by most mainstream media vehicles

Is Qatar Safe?

I lived in Qatar for 3 years before moving to Poland. There were some things that I disliked, and others that I enjoyed. However, most of what the media says (both on the positive and negative side) often doesn’t match my perception and that of my friends that still reside there.

Eg: Is Qatar safe? It depends. It depends on what you understand by violence.

If you mean gangs fighting for territory with heavy weapons like in some poor districts of Latin America, then Qatar is a very safe place. I could leave my wallet unattended on a restaurant table while going to the toilet with no fear that someone would steal it.

But if by violence you mean things like raging drivers speeding with large cars (like the ubiquitous white Land Cruisers) and threatening (and sometimes killing) entire families, then I would say that Qatar is not that safe.

In this article, I will use both real numbers from solid sources and some personal anecdotal information. In the end, I bet you will be able to judge for yourself.

And talking about numbers,

Qatar Crime Rate

Ready for some shocking numbers?

Here is a brief comparison of crime statistics from Qatar versus the United States (rates are cases per 100 000 people per year):

Homicide Rate: 0.4 in Qatar, vs 6.52 in the US.

Burglaries Rate: 50.6 in Qatar vs 714.4 in the US

Robbery Rate: 2.6 in Qatar vs 146.4 in the US.