Dr. Mahfoud Amara
The recent Arab Cup hosted in Qatar and the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Morocco offer valuable insights into evolving models of sport event hosting, football development, and regional competition hierarchies in the Arab world. The Arab Cup, hosted in Qatar for the second time (following the 2021 edition), and AFCON 2025 in Morocco - returning after a 37-year absence since 1988 - are not isolated tournaments. Rather, they are embedded within broader strategic trajectories linked to future FIFA World Cups: Qatar’s post-2022 legacy, Morocco’s preparation for the 2030 FIFA World Cup (co-hosted with Spain and Portugal), and Saudi Arabia’s hosting of the 2034 FIFA World Cup. Taken together, these events provide an opportunity to reflect on new hosting models, shifting regional hierarchies, football development strategies, and the political economy of international sport in the Arab and African contexts.
One of the most significant lessons from the FIFA Arab Cup in Qatar is the country’s move toward a multi-event, medium-scale hosting model. During the FIFA Arab Cup period, Qatar simultaneously hosted, the FIFA Intercontinental Cup, and the Gulf Cup Under 23 (and before that the Under 17 FIFA World Cup), while continuing to leverage infrastructure developed for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. This approach reflects a transition from a one-off mega-event logic toward a portfolio strategy, where multiple events of varying scale coexist within a compressed timeframe. The model demonstrates a high level of organizational confidence, institutional maturity, and operational capacity.
It also raises important questions about event differentiation and branding: how can each tournament maintain a distinct identity, narrative, and public visibility when hosted simultaneously?
The Qatari case suggests that the next challenge is no longer technical delivery, but strategic storytelling, audience segmentation, and legacy management-ensuring that each event generates its own symbolic and cultural impact rather than being overshadowed within a crowded event ecosystem.Traditionally, the Arab Cup has often been treated by many federations - particularly in Asia - as a secondary or preparatory competition, with reserve squads prioritised over first teams. However, repeated hosting, improved organization, commercial visibility, and competitive intensity offer the Arab Cup an opportunity to reposition itself as a serious regional tournament, potentially comparable to the Asian Cup or AFCON. This repositioning is further reinforced by the decision of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to shift AFCON from a biennial to a quadrennial cycle starting in 2028, reducing scheduling congestion for Arab African teams.
A sporting pattern from the Arab Cup is that, for the second consecutive edition, the tournament was won by a North African team fielding largely reserve players. This outcome invites reflection on structural differences between football ecosystems in Arab Africa and Arab Asia. The most recent final - between Morocco and Jordan - illustrates contrasting approaches. Jordan approached the Arab Cup as a high-priority competition, closely linked to preparation for World Cup , while Morocco relied on squad depth developed through strong domestic leagues. This raises broader questions about league competitiveness, player development pathways, coaching education systems, and institutional continuity.
This invites a reassessment of long-term strategies: should federations prioritize naturalization of foreign players, or invest more systematically in local youth development, while selectively integrating diaspora talent? Rather than opposing these approaches, the emerging lesson is the need for strategic alignment - using diaspora players to raise standards while strengthening domestic academies to ensure sustainability, especially in critical positions such as central defense, midfield, and attacking roles. Finally, the Arab Cup highlighted the often-underestimated value of Arab coaches. Both finalists were coached by Moroccan managers, challenging the long-standing assumption that foreign coaches are inherently superior.
The success of Arab coaches suggests the need to rethink coaching hierarchies and invest more deliberately in regional coaching education, mobility, and recognition.
* The views expressed are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publication
Dr. Mahfoud Amara is an Associate Professor in Sport Social Sciences and Management at Qatar University.
