Within Doha’s Aspire Zone – which will have played host to 103 of the 104 games at the FIFA U-17 World Cup Qatar 2025™ by the end of the tournament – stands the mighty Khalifa International Stadium.
With its highly impressive structure that sits illuminated under the night sky, this facility has stayed firmly in sight for the players at this tournament, which will enter the semi-final stage on Monday 24 November.
The stadium, which held several matches at the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™, is now gearing up to host the final of the U-17 World Cup. In other words, only 90 minutes stand between tomorrow’s semi-finalists and the chance to grace the same turf as some of their greatest idols – a prospect firmly etched on the minds of these talented young prospects.
“Whenever we come to play here, all our eyes are on the stadium,” said Portugal No10 Mateus Mide. “It’s a huge stadium. [It’s] very beautiful. Of course we all dream of playing there, and I’m confident that we’ll get there and win the tournament.”
Portugal will face Brazil and their prolific goalscorer Dell in the semi-finals, who had begun thinking about playing at the Khalifa before the tournament even started.
“It gives us that extra bit of motivation,” the forward told us in a pre-tournament interview. “FIFA have got it spot on. Having the chance to play in a stadium where top, top players also starred at the World Cup is very special.”
During Qatar 2022, the Khalifa International Stadium hosted eight games: six in the group stage, the round of 16 clash between the Netherlands and the USA and the third-place play-off between Croatia and Morocco.
Harry Kane, Luka Modric, Virgil Van Dijk, Achraf Hakimi, Kalidou Koulibaly, Pedri Gonzalez and Jamal Musiala are just some of the big names to have lit up this arena during the last World Cup, and the promising youngsters on display at the U-17 World Cup are desperate to follow in their footsteps.
“Just thinking about it gives you goosebumps. All the players who’ve played there, the emotion… It’s hard to describe. You just have to feel it,” explained Austrian forward Nicolas Jozepovic. “It’s a childhood dream and we’ll do all we can to play there.”
In the rival camp, Italy’s captain has similar dreams of a place in the final at the Khalifa. The semi-finalists may not need any extra motivation, but the possibility of playing at a former World Cup venue is a thought that no player can get out of their head.
“Playing there in front of a big crowd, and on the same pitch as senior teams, would be incredible. It really would be incredible,” enthused the Italian.
