I happened to be in Mexico City the weekend of the re-opening of the Azteca Stadium prior to the World Cup 2026, for the México vs Portugal friendly. I happened to be sitting very close to Gianni Infantino. So of course I got close to him to snap a photo.
A week later, my buddy Chore sent me this screenshot:
While I am no longer featured in FIFA’s front page, the note persists. Unfortunately they cut off the top of my head.
This is the photo we snapped from a slightly different angle.
My team Monterrey qualified for the FIFA Club World Cup happening as we speak in the US, and it’s the first one with the 32 team format. It all lined up so that we could watch three matches all at the Rose Bowl stadium in Pasadena, CA with some of the world’s top clubs.
Four Kirsch boys made it: Moi, Ilán, Ari, and myself. Here’s proof:
Yes, we also did a bunch of Los Angeles things. But those are not for this post.
Last match of the trip, and one would have thought best match of the first round. At the end it was a 1-1 tie in which Spain deserved to win.
Before the match, we went to The Pearl, the artificial island full of fancy things.
The main event. The match with the highest demand for tickets out of all 64 matches including the Final.
We stopped at Lusail Mall before the game.
This was one of the most attractive games for us. It was a good game but unfortunately not very spectacular: 0-0. Al Bayt is both the farthest (about 1 hour drive) and the most beautiful stadium we’ve visited. It’s made to look like a Bedouin tent, impressive.
Brazil looked very, very strong. After seeing them it’s clear it won’t be easy to knock them out.
Located next to the Khalifa Stadium, this is a brand new and very impressive museum. Like many other things – it was eerily deserted – but is a definite recommendation.
Next stop: Mexico vs Poland.
Straight out of one game we headed out to the next one at Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium. Time to support my adoptive country and fellow CONCACAF team.
This ended in a 1-1 draw that the US deserved to win. After the match we ended up eating Lebanese food at 1 AM in the Mall of Qatar across the street. Pretty pretty pretty good.
It was a rough first day.
My flights were: AUS-DFW, DFW-LHR, LHR-DOH.
American Airlines was quick to mess with my plans by delaying the AUS-DFW flight. But only 10 minutes at a time so that I can’t look for alternatives before missing a connection. I made it to the gate of my connecting flight 3 minutes after it closed.
I was instead forced to stay the night in Dallas (not the airline’s fault of course, so hotel’s on me) and put on a flight that lands me in Doha with barely enough time to get to my first match with suitcase and all.
Thankfully, I went to the airport early and straight to beg to a really nice AA lady, using my best sad kitten eyes face 🥹. She got me on an earlier flight direct to Doha! That gave me enough time to go to the apartment, shower, eat, nap, then to the two matches! Sure, it was a middle seat all the way to the back in a 15 hour flight. But I was going to make it! No complaints.
I was impressed at the big and modern airport. And most impressed at the speed and efficiency of immigration. Wow! Will everything in Qatar be this fast and efficient? (Narrator: no, it won’t).
The apartment we got is in a small building that is definitely not new in some random Doha neighborhood. It absolutely demolished my expectations though. It is simple with no luxury, but perfect: Large, comfortable, newly renovated. Two bedrooms, 1.5 bathrooms, kitchen, fridge, washing machine, TV. Everything looks fairly new. AC works like a champ. There’s several places to eat and buy groceries around it that are quite cheap. Everyone speaks serviceable English – probably better than Arabic.
It took an eternity to go through the extremely buggy app. And it took an eternity for them to arrive over mail. But we finally – and just 2 days before kick off – receive the very last and most important Panini stickers for our album.
They sell for a lot of money in the black market. Best of luck.