In the evening, the German national soccer team will play their decisive group game. Numerous fans will obviously not be able to support the DFB team – because host Qatar does not process their applications for entry.
A number of fans of the German national soccer team have had to let their World Cup tickets expire because they have problems with entry permits for Qatar. The German fan embassy is aware of around 30 cases, as confirmed by spokesman Philipp Beitzel. Fans fear they will be left with all costs, including flights and hotels, if there is no quick solution.
“It’s a big problem for the fans. It’s unclear to us what the reason is. Whether it’s for technical reasons, for example. We can’t tell,” said Beitzel. At the same time he complained: “The information to the people who are affected is rather sparse.” The fans concerned “often submitted their applications weeks ago”, but so far they have not been processed without justification.
If you want to travel to Qatar, you need a valid Hayya card for the duration of the tournament. Some people are currently still missing confirmation for this, reported Beitzel. “We’re trying to solve that with the German embassy. That’s going to be difficult.” There are also special permits to enter and exit the country on the same day, as practiced by many fans who have found accommodation in Qatar’s neighboring countries during the tournament. But there are also problems with this regulation: “There are fans for whom entry worked for the first game and not for the second game. We also know of fans who are currently still waiting in Bahrain to travel to the game against Costa Rica be able.”
The last group game of the German team against Costa Rica will kick off at 8 p.m. (in the live ticker on ntv.de) in the evening, around 1,500 German fans are expected to attend the game. Beitzel had also complained to “Goal” and “Spox” that “there is a constant lack of clarity in terms of rules throughout the tournament. On some days, for example, rainbow flags are allowed, on others there are problems with admission. There is generally a gap between the , what FIFA specifies and what is actually implemented on the ground.”