DOHA, Qatar | There are a multitude of reasons for coming or not coming to the World Cup this year. For Montrealer David Dicso, it was to be there to collect memories.
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“I have a two-year-old and I wish I could show him what I went through and give that back to him. Maybe he will want to live it,” he said, adding that his son will be older to understand in 2026 when the tournament will be presented jointly by Canada, the United States and Mexico.
We meet David with his friend Marc-Olivier Lafontaine-Côté who currently lives abroad. The meeting takes place at the foot of the Royal Palace on the Corniche, a scenic road that runs along Doha Bay.
“For me it’s a whim and I’m in London so it’s quite accessible and I’ve been playing football for quite a long time. The fact that Canada qualified for the first time in 36 years is the number one motivator. »
Sequence
It must be said that David Dicso is not at his first World Cup. He also attended the 2014 tournaments in Brazil and 2018 in Russia.
“I wanted to continue the streak, knowing that the next World Cup is in Canada. »
Arrived the day before in Doha, he admits that he would perhaps never have come to this corner of the world otherwise.
“It’s not a destination I would have thought of, like Russia for that matter. I don’t think I would have come to Qatar if there hadn’t been a World Cup. »
For him, the human experience is at the heart of travel. We also see him greet Cameroonian supporters met earlier in the day and Germans who stop in front of him seeing his Germany jersey.
“Meeting fans from all over and visiting a culture is reason enough to experience a World Cup. »
Documentary
David Dicso will be in Qatar for the final three weeks of the World Cup and he came here with an idea in mind.
“I do video for a living, so I want to do my own little ambient documentary, and that’s one of the reasons why Marc-André is with me.
“I wanted to follow a Canadian fan and experience a bit of what he is experiencing here. I also want to show people what makes soccer fun. I love soccer and I eat it. »
In short, his intention is to offer an immersion in a World Cup and allow people to see it through his eyes.
“I want people to understand what I went through in 2014 and 2022.”
As for the way in which he is going to offer his material, he admits that he is in reflection.
“I don’t know yet how I’m going to make this documentary, I don’t have a contract with anyone. I don’t know if it will be a documentary or even thumbnails. »
You would think that coming to spend three weeks in Qatar would be overpriced, but it turns out that it is rather the opposite according to David who has seen worse elsewhere.
Surprised at the price
“I’m doing this for me, I paid all my expenses out of my own pocket. I was surprised at the price, I think Brazil cost me more for a week. »
The costs related to transport and food are also very decent according to him.
“Flights were priced right, food markets are very reasonable and Uber is cheap. A driver told us that it’s not crowded and that public transport is free, so fares are low. Drivers flip. »
During his stay, he intends to go and see eight matches. However, he was unable to get his hands on tickets for yesterday’s meeting between Canada and Croatia.
Not the big vibe
Fan activities are uncrowded
Photo Dave Levesque
Fan-only activities are very sparse during the day, a sign that there may not be as many fans as expected.
DOHA, Qatar | For the first time since our arrival, we had the opportunity yesterday to take a look at the various activities aimed at supporters, and we were able to see that they are few in number.
We went to the Corniche, a panoramic road that runs along Doha Bay and which is closed to car traffic during the World Cup.
There are various activities such as mini-golf and souvenir or food kiosks. However, we note that these are almost deserted, we can almost count all the people we meet.
We tell ourselves that it is because it is the beginning of the afternoon and it is particularly hot.
We are told that it is much livelier in the evening, which we have not yet had the opportunity to verify.
Not so many people
If we’re here, it’s because we have an appointment with David Dicso and Marc-Olivier Lafontaine-Côté, two Quebecers who came to experience the World Cup.
The first is not his first barbecue since he also went to Brazil in 2014 and Russia four years ago. His conclusion is without appeal.
“It’s beautiful, but there aren’t that many people. I don’t understand why it’s not perfect since they turned 12. »
And yet, the first impression was good when they got off the plane, assures Marc-Olivier.
“It’s all about looks. You arrive at the airport and it’s wow ! we say to ourselves that we are going to live an experience, but you arrive at the village of the fans and it is calm at home calm. It’s a field. »
Soccer nation?
David Dicso does not cut corners, he questions the love of Qataris for sport.
“Actually, you wonder how Qatar is a footballing nation, because there is nowhere to go to see the matches [si on ne va pas au stade]. »
However, the ingredients are there to make it work.
“Here, there are fans from all over, it’s fun, and on paper, it’s sellable because they say people will be in country communities.
“And we will experience the opposite with Canada, the United States and Mexico with long distances and jet lag. »
And yet, we repeat, the potential is there for everything to be perfect on paper.
“Here, everything is perfect, the bus is free, the metro is free, we give sim cards to foreigners, but the atmosphere is really weird. »
David Dicso does not hide it, he lived very different experiences during his trips to Brazil and Russia.
“I have lived worse in Brazil. It was my first World Cup, but I knew Brazil from having been there often before. »
However, everything was more complicated, we had to show autonomy, whereas in Qatar, foreign supporters are relatively well taken care of.
“In Brazil, they had raised the prices in the hotels, you had to deal with your troubles to book, there were no villages like here. It was expensive and it was trash. »
And there is the whole security aspect. In Doha, you can walk everywhere at any time of the day or night with peace of mind.
“In Brazil, crime is high, prostitution is intense and there was even a poster at my hotel saying that prostitution was not illegal. »
More atmosphere
Life was therefore less pleasant on a day-to-day basis, but the football atmosphere was much better.
“In Russia, I was in Samara and people were happy to welcome us, they were proud. I went there with a negative image of Russia, I was with a Haitian friend and people were lining up to have their picture taken with him. »
And he has fond memories of the final between Argentina and Germany in Brazil.
“I saw the final in Rio and there were 100,000 people on the beach in Copacabana. The Argentinians had their tents and camped everywhere. »