“No one will be able to destabilize us” – Qatar coach Felix Sanchez addresses allegations of FIFA World Cup hosts bribing Ecuador players for opening game

Qatar coach Felix Sanchez recently addressed rumors that the FIFA World Cup hosts have bribed Ecuador ahead of the opening game against Ecuador.

Reports recently emerged that Qatar had bribed Ecuador with $7.4 million to lose the opening match of the World Cup. Amjad Taha, regional head for British Center for Middle East Studies, tweeted:

"Exclusive: Qatar bribed eight Ecuadorian players $7.4 million to lose the opener(1-0 2nd half). Five Qatari and #Ecadour insiders confirmed this.We hope it's false. We hope sharing this will affect the outcome.The world should oppose FIFA corruption."

Sanchez has now dismissed the report as 'misinformation' as he said (via Washington Post):

“For many, many years we’ve been training and preparing. We are together strong. No one will be able to destabilize us, We are motivated and happy to play in the World Cup tomorrow. We need to control our emotions and bring our A game and don’t take anything else into account.”

Sanchez also urged his team to shut down the criticism of non-football-related issues. He urged the host nation to focus on their performances on the pitch:

“The best thing that can happen is to focus on football, keep calm and avoid the noise and rumours, Obviously we don’t like it when people criticize our country. We managed to have great preparation, kept calm and that’s how we planned this.”

Qatar will play Ecuador in the opening fixture of the 2022 FIFA World Cup. They will also take on Senegal and the Netherlands in Group A on November 25 and November 29, respectively.

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FIFA have issued a statement regarding banning beer during the 2022 FIFA World Cup

Fan Festival Official Opening - FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022

FIFA have issued a statement confirming that selling beer will be banned in the stadium perimeter during the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The statement read (via Zee News):

"Following discussions between host country authorities and FIFA, a decision has been made to focus the sale of alcoholic beverages on the FIFA Fan Festival, other fan destinations and licensed venues, removing sales points of beer from ... Stadium perimeters."

Executive director of the fan group, Ronan Evain, reacted to the news, saying:

"For many fans, whether they don't drink alcohol or are used to dry stadium policies at home, this is a detail. It won't change their tournament."