This week on The New Arab Voice we’re looking at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. 

Middle Eastern and North African teams have made history during the tournament, causing major sporting upsets like Saudi Arabia’s win over Argentina and Morocco's victory against Belgium. 

While Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Tunisia didn’t progress to the knock-out stages, Morocco remains in the running for the coveted trophy - just three games away from footballing glory. 

During the tournament, we’ve witnessed a tidal wave of support from fans across the region, not just for their national teams but for fellow Arab and African nations. 

This pan-Arab solidarity has been expressed through mass celebrations inside and outside the stadiums, as well as the waving of the Palestinian flag. 

On the episode, The New Arab Voice speaks to Moroccan football fans Amine Hafed (@amine.elhafid) and Mehdi Merin (@yomehdi4reel) about their experiences after the Atlas Lions clinched a spot in the final eight. We asked them what lies behind this success and whether having a World Cup in the Middle East has made a difference for Arab teams on the pitch. 

Joining them are Algerian football journalist Maher Mezahi (@mezahimaher) and The New Arab’s Shahla Omar (@shahlasomar), who assess the football we’ve seen so far, displays of pan-Arab solidarity and give their predictions on what we’ll see happen next. 

Finally, we spoke to Emile Badarin, a Palestinian research fellow based at the College of Europe, Natolin Campus in Warsaw about the visibility of the Palestinian cause during the tournament and the football fans who refused to speak to Israeli journalists. 

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This podcast is written and produced by Rosie McCabe, with help from Hugo Goodridge and Basma Elatti. Theme music by Omar al-Fil. 

Other music by Blue Dot Sessions. 

To get in touch with the producers, follow then tweet us at @TheNewArabVoice or email hugo.goodridge@alaraby.co.uk 

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