The longest distance between World Cup stadiums in Qatar will be just 55 kilometres (35 miles), equivalent to travelling from Manchester United's Old Trafford to Liverpool's Anfield, figures released Monday show. World Cup organisers in the Gulf have calculated the distances between the proposed eight venues for the 2022 tournament using a satellite mapping tool.
As well as the distance between the Al-Bayt and Al-Khor stadiums, organisers said the shortest distance will be just 4.5 km (3 miles) from the Khalifa International to Qatar Foundation stadium. That is approximately the same as that between Arsenal's Emirates ground and London rivals Tottenham Hotspur's White Hart Lane.
By contrast, the longest distance in Brazil between venues was more than 3,140 km, and the shortest almost 340 km, according to the figures. They were released by the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy, the body responsible for overseeing the tournament in Qatar, to mark the fact it is exactly six years until the first game of 2022 and underline the compact nature of their event. Organisers say the tournament will be the "ultimate live experience" for fans, giving supporters the chance to attend more than one game a day in person. As well as being held in a relatively small country with short distances between venues, there could be as many as four games played each day at the beginning of the tournament.