As noon approached, muezzins across Qatar called Muslim soccer players, fans and officials to the first Friday prayers of the first World Cup to take place in a Muslim country.
At the Ibrahim al-Khalil Mosque in Doha's West Bay, with its towering minaret and carved wooden doors, they gathered for the weekly congregational prayer that many Muslims believe is obligatory.
Among the faithful were fans from Tunisia, Oman and India, a uniformed FIFA official, kids dressed in French soccer kits and hundreds of men and women from nearby hotels and tower blocks.
