An England fan from Greater Manchester has spoken about his quest to get a pint at the Qatar World Cup – but says the booze ban hasn't dampened spirits.
Tom O'Dea, 39, from Shaw in Oldham, is in the gulf state with two pals, and is enjoying his fourth World Cup having previously watched the Three Lions in South Africa, Brazil and Russia.
He is booked on an organised package which includes return flights from London and ten nights' accommodation in an apartment in a fan village on the outskirts of Doha, which set him back just over £1,000.
He flew 4,000 miles to the Qatari capital from Heathrow last Sunday, after watching his beloved Oldham Athletic draw 0-0 away at Maidstone on Saturday.
And Tom, who was there to see Gareth Southgate's men thrash Iran 6-2 on Monday, as well as their 0-0 draw with the USA on Friday night, says he has so far been pleasantly surprised by what he has found.
"The organisation has been 80 per cent perfect, since the moment we got off the plane, all the way to getting into the ground," he told the Manchester Evening News this week.
"I'm the sort of football fan who embraces new countries. I went to watch Oldham on a pre-season tour in Morocco four years ago, so I had an idea of what to expect.
"Obviously the nearer the tournament came there was the booze bans and stuff and I thought 'oh they're going back on their word now, it's going to be terrible'.
"But you know what it has been alright. And every England fan I've met so far has said the same thing. A few have been maybe a little bit taken aback, but you have to accept every country is different and everywhere isn't like England. I understand that if you're going to come here you have to open up a bit."
He said there had been some minor gripes following his trip to the 'bright, modern and colourful' Khalifa International Stadium on Monday.
"Inside the ground, they wouldn't serve food until half-time," he said. "Then they said some of it wasn't available so they've obviously had some logistical problems on that front.
"And afterwards, they shut one of the nearby Metro stations. I don't think they realised how busy it was going to be", he said.
Despite widely reported issues with FIFA's electronic ticketing system which saw scores of England fans locked outside after kick-off, Tom said he made it inside well in time to see the Three Lions romp to victory in their opening group game.
"They searched me and they were just a bit funny about my phone charger," he said "But after a few minutes and checking with a supervisor they let me in fine," he added.
In a heavily criticised U-turn just 48 hours before the tournament got underway, FIFA announced beer would no longer be sold inside or around the perimeter of the stadiums.
On the booze ban, Tom said: "It's not the end of the world. We got to the stadium quite early [for England vs Iran] on Monday and to be fair, there was nothing much you could do outside the ground.
"But me being me, they had like African dancers and I took the effort to talk to them, to talk to Iranians about how they'd been building up for it. It was a different experience.
"But at the end of the day it's in some ways not a bad thing as well as there's no toxicity and not much animosity that you sometimes get at football. It's felt more like a feel good factor around the stadium, and a big footballing party.
"If you're coming over here thinking it's going to be like a lads holiday, like you're going to Benidorm or something, you are going to struggle. But if you embrace it like I've done, it's fine.
"It was a bit weird after the Iran game we came out, and had a cup of tea and a coffee in a cafe. And the football wasn't being shown.
"But if you want a beer, you'll get one. The pubs and bars are hidden away in the hotels. You don't see them from the outside, they just look like five-star hotels.
"You have to go through reception and through a few layers of security but once you're in, you're fine.
"The first place we found it was like £12 a pint. It was good though, there was entertainment on and stuff.
"But the place we went after the England v Iran game, which was inside the Radisson Blu, there were special offers where you could get vouchers and buy in bulk, say six beers, and it worked out about £8 a pint. There were flags up and it was wall-to-wall football fans.
"There's one called the Red Lion as well in another hotel as well where it's even cheaper, I think about £6 a pint, but that has been really busy and we didn't wanna risk going there and not getting in. The places are there you just have to find them."
Adding: "One thing we have noticed is that Uber's are really cheap, they've been about a pound a mile. So what you're paying in beer you're saving in taxis."
Tom described his accommodation in the Al-Wakrah area, around 10 miles and a 30-minute drive from central Doha, as a "basic apartment".
He says around 5,000 fans are being housed in the village which consists of a series of apartment blocks with shops, supermarkets, food stalls, and other amenities also inside.
"It's just holding football fans at the minute but it's clear it's been used for something before that," he said. "But it's fine, all I need is a bed and it ticks that box.
"They lay coaches on which take you to the nearest Metro station, then you get unlimited travel on the tube with your Hayya Card which is like your Visa.
"There's no beer being sold at the accommodation but there is a football pitch, volleyball pitch, and basketball court in the middle. What it was missing was a big screen to watch the other games on and they've put one in now which is brilliant.
"And it's a really good atmosphere" he added. "Its full of English, Mexicans, and Argentinians. Our bus to the Metro station the other night was full of Senegal fans and they want us to win.
"There's been a lot of chat about locals wearing England shirts but that happens all over and I've had loads of them saying they backing us. For them, this is probably the only chance to get to see these Premier League players."
Tom will be at England's clash with Wales on Tuesday as well as Belgium v Cameroon and Serbia v Canada. "We're going to try and squeeze in some others as well if we can" he said before flying back to the UK on Wednesday.
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