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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Sport
Barney Ronay in Doha

Was Aspire project a vehicle to deliver votes to Qatar’s World Cup bid?

a aspire Qatar World Cup Football Fifa Garcia Dreams Issa Hayatou Pelé
The Aspire Dome and surrounding training fields in Doha.
The Aspire Dome and surrounding training fields in Doha. Photograph: Dpa Picture Alliance Archive/Alamy

Look who we are, we are the dreamers. We make it happen. There is something seductively inane about the soundtrack to Qatar 2022, present in the slogans plastered across its surfaces, the sonic assault of the World Cup PA, the playlist of official anthems, centralised messages, approved corporate machine-feelings.

“Believing is magic” read the words across the back of the T-shirts worn by a column of men filing through the service exit of the vast fibreglass tent that is Al Bayt Stadium in the wee hours of Friday morning. The power of dreams. The power of football. The power of Football Dreams. What could ever be wrong with that?

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