ARGENTINA won their third FIFA World Cup in an extraordinary style on Sunday beating France 4-2 in a penalty shootout, following a dramatic 3-3 draw after extra time.
It won’t be wrong to say that it was an incredible night of drama and fluctuating of fortunes, delivering one of the all time great finals to cap a wonderful tournament excellently hosted by Qatar. In fact, what was true at the start of this tournament remained true at its finish.
Whilst we really felicitate the Argentinean team for amazing display of their talent and clinching the cup, it is also time to fully recognize and acknowledge the efforts and hard work put in by Qatari government to make the event successful which will be remembered for a long time to come.
Regardless of the negativity tried to spread by some elements, Qatar remained up to the task and proved itself as a country which can host mega international events and the millions of accompanying fans.
The country pumped into billions of dollars to build state-of-the-art infrastructure including stadiums, hotels, transport system and so many other things, thus fulfilling all the requirements that were needed, thus proving that they are also part of football family.
Without any iota of doubt, the mega event provided a joyful atmosphere and experience with people coming together and enjoying every moment of it, maybe forgetting also some of their issues.
Saudi Arabia’s opening win against Argentina and Morocco’s run to the semi-final — each was historic in its way.
After this World Cup, we are confident that the game of football will get a more boost in the years to come in the Gulf region and the time is not far when one of its countries will also lift the trophy.
Qatar has earned pride not only for itself but for the whole Muslim Ummah by being the first Muslim country to host the world cup.
Pakistan also made a contribution in the event by providing security as well as locally manufactured footballs. Our people also want Greenshirts playing and earning fame in the field of soccer as well.
The authorities concerned must also pay attention to this end as there is no dearth of soccer talent in our country.
