It was blindingly obvious, to those observing the finale of the battle of the World Cup venues, what Qatar had got right: a passion to win, unshakable self-belief, exciting answers to known drawbacks and a desire and ability to make history.
What the other candidates got wrong, leaving them on the sidelines as Russia and Qatar won the right to stage the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, will be the subject of a great deal of navel-gazing in the days and weeks to come.
Nowhere is the inquest likely to be more intense than in England. The former Newcastle United and England captain Alan Shearer, now a regular football pundit for the BBC, was gracious enough in the depths of his own dejection to congratulate Russia on a "fantastic" bid. But the hunt for culprits to be blamed for a crushing defeat has already begun.
For the easy explanation, there is no need to look beyond the indignation felt by leading figures of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (Fifa) at the conduct of the British media in the build-up to the vote in Zurich on Thursday.
The Sunday Times and the BBC's Panorama programme made separate allegations of corruption of the part of individual members on the executive committee. If this is what they are like when they want the tournament, you could just about hear the Fifa president Sepp Blatter thinking, how would they be once they were awarded it? Certainly, comments from some committee members after the vote suggested that these were issues firmly in mind as they approached their decision-making duties.
But if Qatar was able to succeed with its high-technology answers to the issue of June/July temperatures soaring to 40°C and beyond, surely it should have been possible for the England team's response to the media row - essentially distancing itself from the actions of meddling journalists - to have the same soothing effect.
And few would dispute that the England bid also exuded passion, self-assurance and even - coming from what Mr Blatter is fond of calling the "motherland of football" - more than a trace of history.
The failure of most of the other disappointed competitors - the United States, Australia, Japan and South Korea losing out to Qatar for 2022, and the joint Spain/Portugal and Netherlands/Belgium bids finding themselves unable to match Russia's case for staging 2018 - seemed, at first glance, more readily understandable.
Australia apart, all had hosted either the World Cup or other major football tournaments within the past 30 years. Even so, there is anger in several of the unsuccessful countries that Fifa overlooked them in favour of contenders that had scored relatively poorly in the technical reports.
The Belgium/Netherlands bid for 2018 was always seen as rank outsider; one commentator suggested the economic woes of Spain and Portugal would produce an "austerity World Cup"; and a return to Japan or South Korea probably appeared all too hasty.
But the US - despite having hosted the 1994 event - and Australia feel particularly hard done by, having made highly attractive submissions. It is in those countries that a lot of people claim a World Cup in scorching hot Qatar is a debacle awaiting to happen. Concern about political instability in the Middle East and Russia is also a factor in critical reaction to the vote though, at such a distance from either tournament, it may not have weighed heavily on Fifa minds.
In any event, Qatar's performance in the vote was nothing short of extraordinary, leading the way comfortably in each of the first three rounds before beating the US by 14 votes to eight in the decisive fourth. It was, as has become clear in the warm response from the UAE, a major coup not only for one Gulf state but the region.
Doubts will linger about the conditions players and fans will face, but the committee was demonstrably persuaded by the promise that "all stadiums, training sites and fan zones will be at 27 degrees C, all solar-powered and 100 per cent carbon neutral". It is also unlikely that we have heard the last of the suggestions, strongly denied, of collusion between Qatar and the Spain/Portugal committee members.
On the face of it, England should have felt in with a serious shout for 2018. Or, expressed least controversially, in with a chance of seeing greater return on the money spent on mounting the bid than two votes, at £7.5m (Dh43m) apiece, from the 22-man executive committee. And one of those votes was England's in any case, that of the FA's member, Geoff Thompson.
With the "three lions" - Britain's prime minister David Cameron, plus the football-loving Prince William and the footballing superstar David Beckham - present and correct in Zurich, there was no lack of substance. Along with other great stars of the English game (Alan Shearer, Gary Lineker, Sir Bobby Charlton), there was compelling testimony, in the film accompanying the final submission, from foreign footballing clout associated with Premier League, notably Arsene Wenger and Robert Mancini, French and Italian managers of Arsenal and Manchester City respectively.
Surely the collective weight of these luminaries of football was at least the equal of Qatar's winning cast list of stars headed by Zinedine Zidane, a man who may be hugely popular in France and around the world but is also remembered for ending his own career in explosive fashion, with a red card for violent conduct in the 2006 World Cup Final.
No wonder that such highly respected football writers as the London Daily Telegraph's Henry Winter were already talking, before the votes were cast in the Zurich Exhibition Centre, of the fallout that would follow an English defeat.
Winter described England's bid as easily the best on technical and economic grounds: abundant hotel accommodation, 13 stadiums ready for action already, massive proceeds from hospitality.
But in labelling the decision, one that would either transform or traumatise English football, he laid blame for the possibility of failure squarely at the door of England's own football authorities.
And writing after the votes had been cast, Winter said: "Recriminations now spill forth, about the timing of the Panorama programme alienating ExCo [Fifa executive committee] members, about the dysfunctional nature of the English footballing family that saw the bid fail to harness the power of the Premier League until well into the campaign. What defeat showed was that English football lacks leadership within the Football Association."
Winter's is not a lone voice. As England analyses its failure, summarily eliminated after securing no more than half the first-round votes that went to unfancied Belgium and the Netherlands, the role of footballing authorities, and that of the media, will indeed come under intense scrutiny.
But the vote has also left plenty of observers, including footballing figures associated with the bids of defeated nations, angry with Fifa.
Niall Quinn, the chairman of Sunderland AFC, one of the clubs that would have seen its stadium used, was among those demanding an inquiry. His call was echoed by the former England manager Graham Taylor and the former Australian international, Robbie Slater.
"What I hadn't bargained for is the politics of Fifa, and what I can't digest is that we went out in the first round," Quinn told his club's website. "If that happened then there certainly is something mysterious involved in the politics. If a bid of our strength can't get past the first round then we have to look at other reasons as to why it failed."
Andy Anson, the England bid leader, said his team had been lied to. "David Dein [the bid ambassador and former Arsenal vice-chairman], myself, David Cameron, David Beckham and Prince William were looking people in the eye and asking them for their vote and being told 'yeah'," he told the BBC.
Taylor had similar grievances. "Fifa, as far as I'm concerned, is full of people who say 'yes' to your face and 'no' behind your back," he was quoted as saying. It was a body that answered to no one, governments included, and the time had come for it to be "really investigated".
Slater, now an Australian TV pundit, told his country's media of his dismay at pre-announcement leaks that Qatar had won. "We heard rumours that it had gone to Qatar and officials were embracing in lobbies. It does stink to be honest. I imagine there will be some inquiries into this."
Whether, or how, Fifa can be reformed is bound to become key focus of the wider post-vote debate.
Yet for those who feel that for all its faults and unwillingness to accept criticism, it may have reached at least respectable decisions this week, there is conspiracy-free way of rationalising the outcome.
The presence of strong bids from Qatar and Russia was an extension of the argument that football is no longer the preserve of nations with which it is historically associated. Handing them the prizes, on this theory, was a bold move to spread the universally adored game to countries that had never previously been trusted to stage it at its highest level.
Unless serious evidence emerges of malpractice at the heart of Fifa's voting process, Qatar and Russia's moments of glory may come to be seen as products of that revolution in the sport.
Both nations also enjoy the economic power to ensure that all the logistical needs of a great sporting occasion are met, and to offer lasting benefits. In the case of Qatar, that includes the ambitious commitment to dismantle brand new stadiums and relocate them in less privileged corners of the world. Both countries scored heavily with their pledges to provide infrastructure that was not there already.
And as both Moscow and Doha celebrate notable victories, it is difficult not to share the enthusiasm of the Qatar bid's president, Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad Al Thani, speaking with visible emotion a few hours after the vote. It was clearly not lost on him that his country's triumph had positive and broader implications for a region that has suffered more than a reasonable share of turmoil.
"I think this is exactly what the Middle East needs," he told a lurking journalist from CNN. "This touches people directly. It is not about politics, it is about happiness and enjoying the game, and this is the right place to do it. I believe that in the future, after 2022 perceptions of the Middle East will change entirely, and for the better."
crandall@thenational.ae
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Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
It's Monty Python's Crashing Rocket Circus
To the theme tune of the famous zany British comedy TV show, SpaceX has shown exactly what can go wrong when you try to land a rocket.
The two minute video posted on YouTube is a compilation of crashes and explosion as the company, created by billionaire Elon Musk, refined the technique of reusable space flight.
SpaceX is able to land its rockets on land once they have completed the first stage of their mission, and is able to resuse them multiple times - a first for space flight.
But as the video, How Not to Land an Orbital Rocket Booster, demonstrates, it was a case if you fail, try and try again.
Know before you go
- Jebel Akhdar is a two-hour drive from Muscat airport or a six-hour drive from Dubai. It’s impossible to visit by car unless you have a 4x4. Phone ahead to the hotel to arrange a transfer.
- If you’re driving, make sure your insurance covers Oman.
- By air: Budget airlines Air Arabia, Flydubai and SalamAir offer direct routes to Muscat from the UAE.
- Tourists from the Emirates (UAE nationals not included) must apply for an Omani visa online before arrival at evisa.rop.gov.om. The process typically takes several days.
- Flash floods are probable due to the terrain and a lack of drainage. Always check the weather before venturing into any canyons or other remote areas and identify a plan of escape that includes high ground, shelter and parking where your car won’t be overtaken by sudden downpours.
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
The five pillars of Islam
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What it means to be a conservationist
Who is Enric Sala?
Enric Sala is an expert on marine conservation and is currently the National Geographic Society's Explorer-in-Residence. His love of the sea started with his childhood in Spain, inspired by the example of the legendary diver Jacques Cousteau. He has been a university professor of Oceanography in the US, as well as working at the Spanish National Council for Scientific Research and is a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on Biodiversity and the Bio-Economy. He has dedicated his life to protecting life in the oceans. Enric describes himself as a flexitarian who only eats meat occasionally.
What is biodiversity?
According to the United Nations Environment Programme, all life on earth – including in its forests and oceans – forms a “rich tapestry of interconnecting and interdependent forces”. Biodiversity on earth today is the product of four billion years of evolution and consists of many millions of distinct biological species. The term ‘biodiversity’ is relatively new, popularised since the 1980s and coinciding with an understanding of the growing threats to the natural world including habitat loss, pollution and climate change. The loss of biodiversity itself is dangerous because it contributes to clean, consistent water flows, food security, protection from floods and storms and a stable climate. The natural world can be an ally in combating global climate change but to do so it must be protected. Nations are working to achieve this, including setting targets to be reached by 2020 for the protection of the natural state of 17 per cent of the land and 10 per cent of the oceans. However, these are well short of what is needed, according to experts, with half the land needed to be in a natural state to help avert disaster.
Essentials
The flights
Etihad (etihad.ae) and flydubai (flydubai.com) fly direct to Baku three times a week from Dh1,250 return, including taxes.
The stay
A seven-night “Fundamental Detox” programme at the Chenot Palace (chenotpalace.com/en) costs from €3,000 (Dh13,197) per person, including taxes, accommodation, 3 medical consultations, 2 nutritional consultations, a detox diet, a body composition analysis, a bio-energetic check-up, four Chenot bio-energetic treatments, six Chenot energetic massages, six hydro-aromatherapy treatments, six phyto-mud treatments, six hydro-jet treatments and access to the gym, indoor pool, sauna and steam room. Additional tests and treatments cost extra.
The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
TOURNAMENT INFO
2018 ICC World Twenty20 Asian Western Regional Qualifier
The top three teams progress to the Asia Qualifier
Thursday results
UAE beat Kuwait by 86 runs
Qatar beat Bahrain by five wickets
Saudi Arabia beat Maldives by 35 runs
Friday fixtures
10am, third-place playoff – Saudi Arabia v Kuwait
3pm, final – UAE v Qatar
Martin Sabbagh profile
Job: CEO JCDecaux Middle East
In the role: Since January 2015
Lives: In the UAE
Background: M&A, investment banking
Studied: Corporate finance
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
Singham Again
Director: Rohit Shetty
Stars: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Deepika Padukone
Rating: 3/5
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Ireland v Denmark: The last two years
Denmark 1-1 Ireland
7/06/19, Euro 2020 qualifier
Denmark 0-0 Ireland
19/11/2018, Nations League
Ireland 0-0 Denmark
13/10/2018, Nations League
Ireland 1 Denmark 5
14/11/2017, World Cup qualifier
Denmark 0-0 Ireland
11/11/2017, World Cup qualifier
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
The five pillars of Islam
HAJJAN
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More from our neighbourhood series:
