‘May the best country win’: Jassim Abdulaziz, CEO of Qatar LOC for football, says bidding for the Olympics against India is ‘a tough task’

After successfully hosting the FIFA Under-17 World Cup, Qatar will now look to end the year on a high with the finals of the FIFA Intercontinental Cup and the Arab Cup on Wednesday and Thursday respectively.

The 48-team junior World Cup tournament was held almost entirely on the Aspire Academy grounds, which consists of eight fields.

At the center of the 176 matches played by 96 clubs and countries in recent months was Jassim Abdulaziz Al Jassim, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Local Organizing Committee for Football Events in Qatar. He was the Chief Operating Officer for the 2022 World Cup before becoming CEO ahead of last year’s AFC Asian Cup held in the country.

In a roundtable discussion with reporters ahead of the Intercontinental Cup final between Paris Saint-Germain and Flamengo, Jassim spoke about Qatar’s desire to host the Olympic Games, the success of the U-17 World Cup and lending a helping hand for next year’s World Cup in the US, Canada and Mexico.

Fragments:

Q. Qatar plans to bid for the 2036 Olympics. India, which recently won the hosting rights for the 2030 Commonwealth Games, wants to do the same. You’ve said your country has the facilities, but where do you think the bids for the Games will go?

A. I think it’s a difficult issue. The Olympic Games are very big. Qatar wants to host it, and we will certainly bid. India also has a great bidding plan that they are working on. But at the end of the day, I think every country in the world has the right to bid and host. I know we have the infrastructure and the know-how. India also has many good aspects and many positive things that help them. May the best country win.

Organizing the Olympic Games will be new for Qatar. Will housing facilities be one of the biggest challenges?

I don’t think it’s a challenge. There is a big difference between the Olympic Games and the World Cup. The Olympics have more athletes and officials, but the World Cup has more spectators from abroad. During the World Cup we had many temporary solutions such as cruise ships and tents. At the moment we have a good occupancy of the hotels because tournaments are taking place. So I don’t think it’s a problem at all. We have the infrastructure to match it. And then there are studies underway with the Qatar Olympic Committee and the IOC (International Olympic Committee), which will ensure that the numbers that we want, or they want, or need, will be available in the country.

There are rumors that Qatar will host the Finalissima between Spain and Argentina. What can you tell us about that?

Discussions are taking place, but nothing is final yet. In a few days we will know and understand whether it is happening or not. (On whether there are any problems) None at all. I think we have the infrastructure. We currently have a lot of Spanish and Argentinian players coming to play various tournaments, so I don’t think this is a problem; it’s just a decision that UEFA and CONMEBOL have to make.

Is Qatar interested in hosting the next edition of the FIFA Club World Cup in 2029? If so, will it be held during the winter period, similar to the 2022 World Cup? How do you think European clubs will react if that happens?

We still haven’t talked about it internally. As a country, we are at a stage where a full examination of hosting major events is being done to assess whether it makes sense for us from an economic, financial, tourism and social perspective. After all, it is that we offer or ask for something. This discussion has not yet taken place; I think it’s just rumors about 2029. I don’t think FIFA has started talking about it, but I liked the 2025 edition.

READ: World Athletics boss Sebastian Coe expects CWG to unlock India’s untapped potential by 2030

About the compact organization of the FIFA U-17 World Cup (within Aspire Academy)…

The tournament was a great success. I have personally seen some players finish their match, take a shower, change clothes and go watch another match to cheer on another team playing at the same time. I think this was the best setup ever. Japan and Mexico (the two teams grew quite close during the competition); that was famous because it went viral on social media. But there were also many other instances where we saw other teams go to watch another game or meet their friends. You saw a Brazilian player playing table football together with a player from Switzerland. We were worried at first about whether it would work. We will build on this success for the next four editions.

Will you play a role in organizing next year’s World Cup in the US, Canada and Mexico?

Yes, we have a request from FIFA for support. We are sending some of our staff. They have the experience to deliver. Organizing 48 teams with 102 matches in three different countries is huge, so they will certainly need a lot of support, and we are more than happy to continue that legacy of supporting our colleagues and friends.

(The writer is in Qatar at the invitation of the Qatar Local Organizing Committee for FIFA events in 2025)

Published on December 17, 2025