The 2022 NFL Week 8 Roundup | Whirled Cup
Ready. Set. GOAL!
Seen from a distance with the Sun at the perfect high angle, Lusail Stadium glistens with all the delicate beauty and engineering superlatives one would expect of a purpose-built soccer complex commissioned by the Qatari government. Carefully honed, as if on a potter’s wheel, Lusail Stadium is shaped in the form of a vast bowl with a gently undulating rim. Its exoskeleton is tightly wrapped around the superstructure and appears as if a jeweler hand-crafted a fine gold mesh curtain and shrink-wrapped the stadium with sky-high ribbons of the illuminous, shapeshifting material. The result is simply stunning. Lusail’s completion on-time only added to national pride that the 2022 World Cup, the first in the Middle East, will roll-out to worldwide smiles beginning in three weeks. Lusail is the flagship stadium of Qatar’s controversial bid to host the quadrennial phenomenon and can be seen as an allegory for the tiny nation coming of age surrounded by older, richer, more powerful oil-flooded nation-states. With matches set to kickoff even before you’ve considered your Thanksgiving turkey, it’s worthwhile to check-in on Qatar’s readiness for its worldwide debut. There are tremendous areas for hope while at the same time there remain stubborn questions of logistics, planning, accommodations, religion, and that much-touted outdoor AC for all. Above all, while an absurd all-in enterprise-wide $300B budget can purchase lots of nice, shiny things, unguaranteed is credibility on the world stage. Qatar’s hope is that its time with the World Cup guarantees its final bill of sale.
Qatar’s journey to NOW began twelve years ago when the Arab nation surprised the soccer world when it was chosen as the 2022 World Cup host, painfully brushing aside thought-to-be likelier bids from the United States, South Korea, Japan and Australia. The 2010 decision, delivered after secretive back-dealings among FIFA’s 22 executive members, came amid rapturous accusations of graft and unadulterated bribery. Yearslong campaigns for investigations and recasting of votes would do nothing to wrest control of the event from Qatar. The controversy would go on to ensnare FIFA’s governing body in shady under-dealings — all illegal — and shortly thereafter set the stage for its ugly downfall. FIFA has since been newly reorganized and overhauled with fresh leadership as it pledges to oversee the sport it’s built around with integrity, honor and truth. We’ll have to see about these promises, but FIFA’s pure focus is unsurprisingly is centered upon the success of its signature event, the World Cup. Tied to a clandestine decision made a decade ago, FIFA and Qatar were forced into uncomfortable backflips right from the start that had bystanders questioning that supposed new oath. Due to searing summertime temperatures that often exceed 122 degrees, the entire enterprise was shifted forward 6 months to November to escape the worst of the bludgeoning heat. This then triggered a domino effect where heavyweight leagues including English Premier League and German Bundesliga were forced to go dark mid-Season to allow players tight turnarounds in attending World Cup training camps; interruptions unneeded with typical June/July World Cup timing. Deals with broadcast partners had to be reworked to accommodate longstanding prior commitments they’d made to other sports while FIFA sponsorships with spirit companies underwent the same treatment being that the games were to be held in a country where alcohol is technically forbidden. The list goes on and on where one pulled string unravels the sweater. To be sure, the 2022 World Cup will be unprecedented in scope and disruption to the normal contours of soccer infrastructure. But FIFA and Qatar persevered and soldiered ever-forward, arms interlinked, with an essentially bottomless budget paving away any feigned smiles.
After a relentless 12-year marathon chewing through a staggering $300B budget, a breathtaking soccer desert-etched metropolis is born. Eight brand-new state-of-the art stadiums (headlined by Lusail), a new 30-mile 5-lane superhighway slicing through the Rub’al-Khali desert, a $36B metro system and the addition of an airport (to augment Hamad International) decorate Qatar’s impressive hub-and-spoke transportation system which is designed with efficient mass-movement on a scale never before attempted in the Middle East. The capital projects are refreshingly complete and running through test-trials in advance of the crush of humanity expected in a matter of weeks. A telltale adventure was told on September 9th when Lusail Stadium was pressed into action as it held a ceremonial Super Cup game pitting two local teams against one another. The on-pitch game was no match for the logistical disaster that unfolded during and after the event. 77,575 fans attended the Super Cup, nearly reaching the venue’s 80,000 stated capacity. It was the largest ever congregation of people to take place in Qatar. Mayhem and disorder — much to Qatar’s dismay — resulted. Stadium stands were out of water by half-time and would not be replenished. Further, there was no water available on the flanks of the stadium because there are to this day no fan amenities, just a dusty, desolate and endlessly sprawling parking lot adjacent to a busy construction zone. This, only compounded by the 93 degree heat. The vaunted cooling system which features high-velocity under-seat air nozzles throughout the stadium and on the pitch, struggled. Security personnel (outfitted with ominous hook-like batons and tight-fitting black ball caps), medical staff and suppliers encountered numerous challenges accessing the facility. GPS coordinates had yet to be loaded into navigation software making waypoint mapping all but impossible. And then there were the lines. At the conclusion of the game, officials didn’t anticipate the throngs of metro users exiting at once. The station entrance lies 1200 feet from Lusail, yet the line to catch a ride back to Doha (20 miles south) snaked a mile and a half folding back on itself several times as the sun set on a broiling day. The wait time to enter the station mushroomed to an unconscionable 4 hours. The final fans boarded trains to Doha well past midnight for an event that officially concluded at 8pm.
There are other interesting issues. 1.5M ticketed spectators are expected to flood Qatar for the World Cup, increasing its population by half in a country the size of Connecticut. The much-ballyhooed entertainment district on Lusail’s apron promising hotels, apartments, restaurants and retail shops remains years away from completion. That leaves just 50,000 hotel rooms, 60,000 apartments, 9000 fan village beds and 4000 cabins splayed across two moored crise ships to accommodate local demand. The math, as you can see, is NOT good. For this reason, Qatar has arranged 160 daily shuttle flights to nearby Dubai and Abu Dhabi where hotel accommodations are much more plentiful. Hence the need for the extra airport. Those 9000 fan village beds? Rows upon rows of unfinished metal cabins do not necessarily connote confidence nor comfort. Then there is the issue of alcohol. Qatar is, of course, a Muslim country which tightly controls the distribution and consumption of alcohol. Special dispensation was made for FIFA but even still, fans are advised to leave their thirst for spirits behind. Beer will only be available for sale at each of the eight stadiums 3 hours prior to kickoff and precisely one hour after the final whistle. Beer sales will not be permitted during gameplay. In central Doha at the main FIFA fan zone, Budweiser can be purchased in a small section from 6:30pm to 1am daily for the duration of the 29-day tournament. Other than that, you’re stuck with permitted hotels where a glass of beer begins at $18. Don’t think about testing the boundaries of drinking zones as penalties for consuming alcohol in non-permitted areas carries a $800 fine or a six month prison sentence. Eeeeeck. In better news, Qatar’s $36M metro system is an engineering marvel. It can zip soccer-goers between stadiums in as little as 20 minutes. A tour of all venue metro stops takes little more two hours in powerfully air-conditioned comfort. A day pass is only $1.65 and will be, incredibly, free for anyone with a game-day ticket. And speaking of air conditioning, the world groaned when Qatar boasted of conditioning the desert heat in each of its seven shining stadiums. When reporters were given access to what those promises felt like in the flesh, the groans turned to rejoice. Deep overhead canopies coupled with powerful air jets strategically placed beneath every venue seat amazingly work to tame the region’s notoriously wicked humid heat. With an average Qatari November/December temperature of 86 degrees, the system is designed maintain 69–71 degrees in the stands. On pitch, giant reticulating air nozzles encircle the playing field and work in concert with 350 sensors embedded in the grass to maintain a constant 70 degrees, pushing all air through industrial-sized HEPA filters scrubbing the flow of dust, pollen and viruses including COVID-19. Oh yes, and the entirety of the conglomerated AC systems will be powered by vast solar farms located 30 miles outside of Doha, farms which reportedly can supply 10 times the power needed to run the AC systems. Impressive to say the least and a tribute to the lengths human ambition can reach when confronted with a confounding riddle.
So if anything, the trip to Qatar will be well worth its weight in Middle East gold, if only to experience the radical AC system planners have wonderfully deployed for your comfort. Beyond this novelty, a temperature check of Qatar’s readiness for November 20th frays in the details. The stadiums are drop dead gorgeous and stuffed to the rafters as an engineering tour-de-force narrative. There is little to be had in terms of fan entertainment in the districts surrounding each venue, as the developments are in various states of construction (as in the case of Lusail) and planning. For the vast majority, the stadiums sit alone in the desert sun connected to traditional social activity by a sprawling new metro system. That metro system is quite a beauty and can whisk you to your far off, pricey Doha hotel in mere minutes. Or to the airport where your bed awaits in Dubai or Abu Dhabi. Or you could try for one of those metal fan villages and hopes that you’re not buying into a Fyre Festival-type disaster. FIFA and Qatari officials stress that the finer points of rolling out their red carpet has not come without small hiccups. But that the wrinkles will be ironed out in the coming weeks and the full panoply of excitement will be unfurled to the world without delay or interruption. At least that’s the thought. A $300B budget tends to see to that. Astounding is Qatar’s seriousness of purpose in its approach to World Cup 2022. Impressive is what has resulted thus far. Unexpected is Qatar’s free kick into an unguarded net. Electrifying is the drama that’s to play out on-pitch at fever pitch in little more than 20 days. Ready. Set. Goal!
AS we turn to the NFL at the halfway point of the Season, patterns are finally beginning to emerge with the wheat slowly beginning to separate from the chaff. Certainly among the former is the only remaining undefeated team in the Eagles. Their cross-state rivals, Steel City, arrived with baby-giraffe legs and stumbled badly — like a baby giraffe, 13–35. Jalen Hurts powered up the offense, as is typical by now, while the team’s secondary put an exclamation mark on their tickets to the post-Season and, likely, Glendale in early. February. The Steelers, with rookie Kenny Pickett in the wheel house, continue to grapple with reality and a 2–6 record. Mercilessly, this past weekend also saw an end to the unlikely string of early-Season New York momentum. The Giants traveled to Seattle and on-cue marched into a Q4 deficit that they’ve become accustomed to combatting with Big Apple comeback ambition. That last piece wasn’t enough to counter the rapidly improving Hawks, led capably by QB Geno Smith. Their first loss in five weeks resulted, slightly denting forward prospects. A more unfortunate story for the Jets where QB Zac Wilson struggles anew amplified by last week’s ACL-injured RB Breece Hall loss. Hopefully this is not an Empower-has-no-clothes type situation but the fact remains that the situation is NOT good. Zac threw for three INTs after a hot first half, reflective of the offensive holes in quick need of Bondo compound. The Pats have their own issues, especially on center, where returnee Mac Jones is re-auditioning against Bailey Zappe and offered a wobbly outing at best. An ugly 1H mixed with a productive and measured 2H produced a NE win, 22–17.
Out west at SoFi, we might just be witnessing the dismantling of a Super Bowl machine. This week, the 49ers are doing the heavy lifting with a terrific flex from two-week-old Christian McCaffrey who spun off oodles of Fantast Football — and actual real world — points in pulling off that rare trifecta (throwing/rushing/receiving TDs). Paired with the stability of Jimmy G and the anticipated return of Deebo Samuel, the FLEX offensive options for SF will know no bounds. The Rams, on the other hand, found theirs and a deflating 14–31 defeat did no favors to their post-season aspirations. Down at AT&T, Dak’s second week back proved he’s just getting started and has plenty of unfinished business that his early-Season injury left unattended. Though the visiting Bears are a messy team, the Cowboys carved them up convincingly, 49–29, when they needn’t. In pounding the table with their victory, America’s Team is telegraphing their regained street cred. Sorely lacking any 2022 street cred are the Raiders who were shutout for the first time in eight years, this time to the Saints, 0–24. It was a grisly affair all around for Las Vegas with the on-field product bordering on the hysterical if it weren’t so plain sad. A newish home in Sin City where a Team remains encumbered by age-old rust and a fair amount of self-inflicted back luck.
In our Round Robin, the Vikings stole another WIN from the rapidly deflating Cards, 34–26. MIN might be the NFL’s team most held together by sticks, duct tape and Laffy Taffy, but a 6–1 record remains a 6–1 record no matter the conditions. Thank you, Kirk Cousins. The Titans rolled to their 5th consecutive victory thanks in large part to a timely return-to-form for RB Derrick Henry who pretty much carried the team this week. Aaron Rodgers and his Packers flubbed yet another 2H comeback exemplifying just how bad the team has become in a year’s time. The Commanders squeaked by the Colts, 17–16, by the thinnest of margins and the hair on Taylor Heinicke’s chinny chin chin. The good new for Indy: QB Sam Ehlinger had an OK outing highlighted by zero INTs, a refreshing change from Matty Ice. The Dolphins are surging with recuperated Tua Tagovailoa continuing to connect with Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle alongside an on-again off-again secondary flooring the accelerator. The Falcons won an excruciating Q4 and OT contest with Carolina, Russell Wilson and his Bears knocked down the 2–6 Jags and the Brownies reminded Joe Burrow that the Bengals aren’t necessarily the default AFC North Ohio team-of-record. A 32–13 drubbing last night underscored the sentiment.
