The 2022 FIFA World Cup is just two months away, but Qatar doesn’t seem to be fully prepared.

On Friday, the $767 million Lusail Stadium hosted the Lusail Super Cup between the Saudi Professional League’s Al Hilal and Egyptian Premier League’s Zamalek — the stadium’s first-ever match.

More than 77,000 people attended the game, but many were less than impressed with their experience, citing lack of water accessibility and bathrooms, long transportation lines, and poor air conditioning.

• “There’s no water, no Pepsi, no food,” said Qatari influencer Hussain al Ashaq. “Everyone is struggling to find anything to eat or drink.”
• An anonymous supplier said they “were given the wrong directions over and over, and the parking passes we had were for lots that didn’t exist.”

“I don’t want to go to the World Cup anymore,” said Egyptian fan Eslam. “Not if it’s like this.”

A Qatar spokesperson told Reuters that the problems would not be an issue by the World Cup’s opening match, and the game allowed organizers to pinpoint issues early.

With 80,000 seats, Lusail is the largest of Qatar’s eight World Cup stadiums and will host 10 matches.

World Cup Wishes

If all goes as planned, Qatar, which is around 4,400 square miles and has a population of just under 3 million, expects that 1.2 million people will travel to Doha over the tournament’s duration — and estimates the tournament will add up to $17 billion to its economy.

Real Madrid reported a profit of $13.2 million for the 2021-22 season, marking the third straight year the top-flight soccer club has avoided losses amid the pandemic. 

The Spanish club — which is the most valuable soccer team in the world at $5.1 billion — posted favorable results for a season in which it won its record-extending 14th UEFA Champions League trophy and 35th La Liga championship. 

• Operating income reached $732.1 million in 2021-22, a 10% increase year-over-year.
• The club has a cash balance of $425 million as of June 30, 2022.
• Its debt — excluding a stadium redevelopment project — is $263 million. 

Real Madrid has been able to drive profits while other top soccer clubs have suffered losses, but the team still lost close to $400 million in income between March 2020 and June 30 due to lingering pandemic-related constraints. 

Additional Revenue Streams

In May, Real Madrid signed a 20-year, $381 million deal with investment group Sixth Street and entertainment experiences company Legends to host concerts and other events at the club’s 81,000-seat Santiago Bernabéu Stadium.

The deal creates additional streams of revenue for Real Madrid — 70% of the proceeds will go toward the club, and 30% to Sixth Street.

Ahead of its much-anticipated regular-season debut as the exclusive “Thursday Night Football” broadcaster, Amazon has linked up with a big name in sports betting.

The company struck a multiyear deal with DraftKings to be the exclusive in-game and pregame betting odds provider for “TNF” broadcasts.

• The deal covers 15 “TNF” games, beginning with Thursday’s tilt between the Los Angeles Chargers and Kansas City Chiefs.
• Amazon will incorporate DraftKings odds and betting insights into its pregame coverage.
• DraftKings will work in game-themed parlays and other offers into its app.

Amazon is looking to “TNF” to drive consumers to its Prime subscription offering, now $14.99 per month after a price increase in February. 

The tech and retail giant’s subscription services revenue — which includes Prime, Prime Video and other content services such as Audible — grew 10% year-over-year in the second quarter to $8.72 billion.

So Far So Good

Viewership for “Sunday Night Football” on NBC rose 32% year-over-year to 23.4 million —  25.1 million after adding in Peacock and other digital platforms.

NFL ad inventory has been a hot commodity, with in-game rates reaching as high as $860,000 for a 30-second spot. National broadcast rates are up around 7% from last year, and ad sales could bring in $7 billion in total revenue.

Amazon expects “TNF” viewership to decline to an average of 12.5 million from 16.4 million last year as users adjust to the broadcast’s streaming-only status.