VANCOUVER — They arrived in Vancouver on a free flight chartered by the Emir of Qatar and are staying at a five-star downtown hotel.

Mohmoud Alban, 30, said his “king,” Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, picked up the hotel tab too, for him and other Qatar supporters who flew into Vancouver this week.

“He’s taking care of all of this,” said Alban in an interview. “You know that’s how Qatar takes care of their people.”

They’ll be outnumbered on Thursday, when Qatar plays Canada at BC Place Stadium, but the visiting fans are brimming with confidence after a 1-1 draw with Switzerland last weekend.

They’ve hit the streets of Vancouver, playing traditional darbuka drums and persuading other nations’ fans to don traditional Arab robes for social media videos.

In the lobby of the JW Marriott Parq hotel, clusters of Qatar fans could be seen in their maroon national jerseys, or designer shirts, Rolexes glittering on their wrists and Louis Vuitton bags slung over their shoulders.

Other Qatari fans are staying at the Fairmont Waterfront hotel on the emir’s tab.

Alban said he and his friends were already impressed by Vancouver, and the friendliness of residents.

“Everyone is welcoming us even if we are playing against Canada here, and everyone is wishing Qatar a good journey in this World Cup,” said Alban. “And I think what Vancouver is doing for the World Cup is amazing, good facilities, everything is safe here. Compared to the U.S., I would say Vancouver did a very good job hosting the World Cup.”

“The stadium is looking fantastic, and yeah, I’m looking forward to the match.”

A statement from FIFA said it has reserved eight per cent of the tickets for each match for supporters of the participating member associations, including Qatar, although that does not necessarily mean only eight per cent of the stadium ends up being fans from those countries.

There won’t be many local Qataris in the crowd. Statistics Canada notes that while about 5,000 people born in Qatar are living in Canada, none describe themselves as Qatari by ethnic or cultural origin, instead, they mostly list their origins as Arab or Indian.

This reflects the unusual domestic demographic of Qatar, where about 3 million people live, but only about one in 10 are citizens. The vast majority are foreign workers.

The nation, which hosted the 2022 World Cup, is fantastically wealthy. Qatari citizens enjoy tax-free incomes, high-paying government jobs, free health care and higher education, and plush retirement benefits.

Abdulla Salem Al-Yafai and friend Aaziz Khalfan Al Haram stood out among the crowds on Vancouver’s Granville Street on Tuesday, dressed in ankle-length robes and traditional head scarves fastened with a black cord.

“We are optimistic about our team, and we’ll do our part in the stands by giving them even more support and encouragement. As fans, we have an important role to play in motivating the players throughout the tournament,’ said Yafai.

“God willing, we will win. Our team is capable of doing it again and qualifying for the next round. Come on, Qatar,” he said.

Mimo Bucko, owner of Moltaqa Moroccan Restaurant in Yaletown, said five big groups of Qatari fans have visited his business.

“We will be busy. We’re making special dishes for them as well,” said Bucko. “We’re doing special whole roasted Moroccan lamb, and they like traditional Moroccan food, pastillas, tagine lamb, and good eggplant stew.”

Omar Alansari, 27, arrived in Vancouver on Monday after flying in from San Francisco, where Qatar played Switzerland.

He said he has been supporting the Qatar national team since he was seven.

“We qualified for the World Cup for the second time in our history. We were a little bit scared about our national team, but when we saw them in the Switzerland game, they were fantastic. They played very well,” said Alansari, adding that he is hoping Qatar will emerge victorious on Thursday.

Alansari said he isn’t worried about being outnumbered on Thursday.

“We will be wearing the traditional clothes,” said Alansari, “You will hear the drums, you will hear us chatting, and you will see what Qatari fans do on the match day.”

— with files from Brieanna Charlebois and The Associated Press

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 17, 2026.

Nono Shen, The Canadian Press