Spain face this tuesday Morocco in the 1/8 finals of the World Cup in Qatar. Choice is not the only one that plays it. Every day, Spanish companies contribute to the controversial tournament, which, despite all the controversy, is approaching D-Day, December 18th. And a lot of materials and services “made in Spain”.

From the lights that illuminate stadiums to the environmental friendliness of facilities. The link between the two is Spain, home to some of the materials and services that make it possible for the World Cup to take place in Qatar. “The stadium lights are made by Philips, but they all come from their factories in Spain,” he notes. Independent Saud Abdulaziz Abdul Ghani, an engineer who designed the stadium cooling system.

Three of the eight stadiums in Doha hosting the tournament were designed in Madrid in the offices Fenwick Iribarren Architectsa studio founded by architects Mark Fenwick and Javier Iribarren in 1990. In addition to the 974 built from shipping containers, Al Thumama and Education City also bear their signature, where the match is played at 4:00 pm on Tuesday. Maghreb country.

coverage and metro

“They designed the stadiums and were also involved in supervising the construction of others,” says Abdul Ghani, aware of Spain’s participation in the first FIFA World Cup in the Arab countries, discussing the labor rights of migrant stadium builders. just acknowledged “400 to 500 deaths – and the plight of minorities such as homosexuals.

Along with the masses of cement and the lights that illuminate each of the matches, Spain also contributes to a swarm of small and medium-sized companies, in some cases with previous experience in this small country, whose extent is similar to that of the Murcia region. and a population of 2.8 million inhabitants. “People in charge of geotechnical work and some companies in charge of cleaning up the environment, such as removing asbestos, also came from Spain,” the engineer clarifies.

at the stadium Al Ryan, one of its directors admits that the bovine skin was the source of some of the materials used in the construction of some of the facilities located in the demolished stadium. “We used pavement materials from Spain, and paint to mark the floor and walls,” he slips at the foot of the track in a conversation with this newspaper. “We demolished it because it didn’t meet the requirements, but we reused 80 percent of the old stadium,” he warns.

Al Rayan is one step away from one of the metro stations, also with Spanish DNA and a $36,000 million investment. Sener, a privately held Spanish engineering and technology company founded in 1956, has signed designs for Doha Metro workshops and depots, as well as elevated stations or Lusail tram design. OHL also participated in an international consortium to build two metro stations.

Wide presence of Spanish companies

Spanish companies have been in the country for many years and are well trusted by the poor local population. During his recent trip to Qatar for the first match of the national team, King Felipe VI met with representatives of several companies, including Acciona, Appplus, FCC, Técnicas Reunidas, Sener itself, LaLiga, SACYR, Iberdrola, Dani García Group. , Padel Club or Integra Agroculture.

The boom represented by the World Cup encouraged the arrival of Spanish companies, mainly associated with construction. “The required infrastructure for the celebration of the tournament included the construction of eight stadiums, several hotels, roads, public spaces and other infrastructure at an estimated cost of $200,000,000,000,” Spain’s commercial office in Doha said.

Those responsible for Spanish business in Qatar ensure that “the withdrawal of Spanish construction and engineering companies from the country, as well as the importance of Qatar’s investment in large Spanish companies, especially in the retail, press, financial, energy and residential sectors.” balance the trade balance. Spain ranks 17th among Qatar’s suppliers with a 1.7% share of the total. More than 3,000 Spanish citizens live in the country.

Spain ranks 17th among Qatar’s suppliers with a 1.7% share of the total.

Trade between Spain and Qatar increased to 1,308 million euros in 2019 despite falling Spanish exports. In 2020, due to the effects of Covid-19, bilateral trade fell to 742 million euros, with Spain’s exports to Qatar reaching 365 million euros and imports from the Arab country reaching 377 million euros. Last year, according to Spanish authorities, there was a rebound to pre-pandemic levels, with trade close to 990 million euros and exports from Qatar up over 40%, driven by hydrocarbon exports and rising prices in the midst of an energy crisis due to wars in Ukraine.

During a state visit to Madrid, the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Zani, announced a real manna of dollars, up to 5,000 million (about 4,700 million euros), which will go directly to the capital of Spanish firms in sectors that Doha, with one of the highest per capita incomes on the planet, considers strategic. Its strategy is to promote agricultural and livestock production in the name of food independence; Renewable energy sources; and creating the climatic conditions for its growth, an area in which Spain is a leader.