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Another situation that must be mentioned is Japan’s second goal in the knockout stage match against Spain. The Japanese made a quick attack from which they scored a goal, and everyone in the stadium and in front of the TV screens wondered if the ball was out of the field during the return pass by the Japanese player. The players of the German national football team, the third team in the group, also wondered about this particular situation since this particular goal could decide their fate in the championship. But what the eye did not see, cameras and software did. The video that appeared a few minutes later showed that, although the ball was in the air, which is why it was initially thought that it must have left the boundaries, it actually remained in the field, so the goal was recognized. To make things even stranger, the technology determined that the ball touched the field line with only 3 mm of its circumference, but that was enough for the goal to be recognized. The Spanish did not protest, and the Germans had to pack their bags. If the goal had not been accepted, the Japanese would be the ones to go home. Generally speaking, VAR and other technologies fully justified their roles this time, establishing these solutions as indispensable in all future major sports events.

do not need a direct line of sight like traditional barcode scanners, ticket validation can run smoothly, thus speeding up the entry to large events.

As part of the project, HID also provided a secure ticket personalization solution, including self-service ticket kiosks for media seat allocation, instant ticketing cabinets with special printers for ticket personalization on the go, thousands of hand-held scanners, and on-site support during each match.

HID’s Event Management Platform (EMP) provided real-time data and reporting through several user dashboards, helping security officials and event organizers re- motely monitor and manage everything, from the number of attendees at each entry and exit point to accreditation of the media and management of large crowds. HID has also been asked to provide a level of external perimeter access control for security checks at every stadium and training ground facility across the country. To do this, they installed a new, patented UHF booster technology developed by HID at hundreds of gates, which serves as a companion device to conventional UHF readers and improves the reading capacity of RFID tags. Units are integrated into the EMP for real-time event and system status monitoring. Crucially, this was all done automatically to maintain a smooth flow in and out of the gates and ensure an optimal user experience for fans. “Having real-time data on when ticket holders enter and exit the perimeter is critical for event organizers to ensure the best possible experience for fans and accredited persons, as well as to get data on which gate needs more attention in the context of crowd control and emergency evacuations,” explained the project manager Cesare Paciello.

In order to ensure the regularity of the matches at the highest level possible, FIFA has prepared several tried-and-tested technologies and one completely new one for use in Qatar. Goal technology and VAR are something we are used to and they have already become a standard in football. Yet, the novelty is that in Qatar the time spent on checking the VAR had to be fully compensated for, which is why the matches were often 15 minutes longer. Interestingly, the final match between Argentina and France had four overtime intervals which lasted a total of 22 minutes, so the penalty shootout was started only after an incredible 142 minutes of the game.

However, at the World Cup in Qatar, a new technology was also demonstrated - Semi-Automated Offside Technology (SAOT). Intended to be a tool to facilitate decision-making during disputed situati- ons such as offsides, it fully justified its role. The semi-automated offside technology works with 12 special cameras placed in the roof structure of the stadium that constantly monitor and record 29 points on the players’ bodies, as many as 50 times in one second. In this way, the software recalculates the exact position of each player in the field, and these 29 points include all limbs and extremities that may be in an offside position i.e. those parts of the body that are relevant for scoring a goal. In practice, this meant that the system could calculate and resolve disputed situations faster than the referees on the field.

An additional element to this technology was the Al Rihla, Adidas’ official ball for the World Cup in Qatar, in which an IMU 500 Hz inertial sensor was installed. This sensor is placed in the center of the ball and has the task of sending data about its movement to the control room 500 times per second. This enables very precise detection of its position and point of impact. This very feature turned out to be crucial in a situation that almost turned into a controversy, when Cristiano Ronaldo, in the knockout stage match against Uruguay, asked to be credited with the first goal of his national team in the match. The ball was thrown in from the side by his teammate Fernandes, Cristiano jumped and seemingly touched the ball with his head which ended up behind the Uruguay goalkeeper. The Portuguese player’s celebration was short-lived, however, as official information soon appeared on the scoreboard that he was not the scorer, but rather his teammate. Ronaldo shook his head in displeasure, and the situation escalated after the game because the Portuguese national team filed an official appeal against the decision and insisted that the goal be attributed to their best player. In order to resolve the situation, FIFA turned to Adidas as the creator of the ball, and the technology soon gave a clear answer. Adidas released sensor data from the ball which showed that Ronaldo did not touch the ball after all. “In the match between Portugal and Uruguay, by using the Connected Ball Technology housed in Adidas’ Al Rihla Official Match Ball, we are able to definitively show no contact on the ball from Cristiano Ronaldo for the opening goal in the game. No external force on the ball could be measured as shown by the lack of ‘heartbeat’ in our measurements,” it was said in the statement by Adidas.

We can safely say that Qatar gave the world a truly successful and unforgettable FIFA World Cup. The practices and experiences from this World Cup will certainly serve as an example for future organizers on how to create a pleasant, yet completely safe environment for mass events.

“We are proud of the fact that the tournament did not witness any security obstacles. It was a safe and family-friendly tournament that brought cultures around the world together. All previous World Cups did not see four matches being played in one city or one region. This was one of the most difficult challenges yet we succeeded,” said Nasser Al Khater, CEO of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. In the spirit of the championship’s slogan “Now Is All”, Qatar undoubtedly became the land where the game was played for posterity. Congratulations! n