You need a lot of money for this question, and we know that they have it and that they are prepared to spend it to find an answer. Part sporting project, part social experiment, the question is this: can Qatar ever reach the World Cup finals?
Remember first that Qatar has little football heritage. And that the Middle East has little football heritage as a region. It does not have a production line of world-class players being farmed into the Champions League or the Barclays Premier League.
Nor does it have world-class national teams. Saudi Arabia is the most consistent nation in the region, but since their peak in the United States in 1994, when they reached the last 16, the Saudis have played in every World Cup finals, not won a game, scored four goals and conceded 26. And Saudi Arabia is a comparative giant of a country. Its population is estimated at 25.7 million; Qatar’s at 1.4 million.
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