According to the latest findings from YouGov Siraj’s survey of over 2000 Arab residents of the Middle East, over two thirds (68%) of respondents agree they felt proud of the Middle East when they heard that Qatar had won the FIFA World Cup .They believe it is a well deserved win for a nation with vision (68%) and a milestone in history (79%).

Rapid TV News reports that according to, Grant Thornton consultants, revenues gained from Middle East rights to televise prime football matches are expected to rise 30% to by the time Qatar hosts the FIFA World Cup in 2022 by $550 million. According to the source, World Cup TV audiences have risen almost 350% in the Middle East since 1986, while TV penetration rates in Qatar itself have grown from 67% to 94% since 2002.

Rapid TV News reports that Nilesat is currently installing state-of-the-art geolocation technology that will help identify the location of the troublesome signals and locate culprits that have been jamming its signal and interfering in some of its news channels as well as Al Jazeera Sports’ screening of the FIFA World Cup soccer games.

The National reports that Abu Dhabi’s Ministry of Economy has been receiving complaints from consumers that some distributors had raised the cost of Al Jazeera Sport viewing cards for the World Cup broadcasts, forcing the ministry to investigate on this issue. It has been reported that football fans who have paid more than the recommended price for World Cup viewing cards are being urged to keep their receipts and report the seller to the ministry.

Lambie-Nairn, a leading branding and design consultancy, has created a new identity system for Qatar's 2022 bid for the FIFA World Cup. Qatar 2022 sets out to be a completely new type of World Cup; compact for the benefit of the fans and the environment, customised to the interests of the teams and the promise to create a strong legacy for the sport in the entire region.

According to Arabian Business, UAE telecom provider du, is still finalising a deal to show live coverage of the FIFA World Cup. Customers were concerned they would miss out on the live coverage of the world's premier sporting event; however, du reassured its customers that the company was in the final stages of talks with content providers and would shortly announce packages for the World Cup.

Rapid TV News reports that ART is planning to exit the pay-TV market before even covering this summer's South Africa-based World Cup soccer tournament. There were signs that the agreement had broken down when ART failed to show some games from the Africa Cup competition played this past January.