The World Tourism Organization and the Qatar National Tourism Council (QNTC) announced this week a series of collaborations to support the tourism industry in Qatar and around the world.
Signed at the time of the WTO Secretary General’s visit to Doha, these agreements will enable QNTC to sponsor the first WTO Sport Tourism Start-up Competition, which will be held in collaboration with the FCB (Futbol Club Barcelona). This competition aims to promote and strengthen the tourism and sport sectors, while strengthening the entrepreneurial ecosystem and stimulating innovation in the sport tourism sector.
The winners of the competition will be welcomed in the Barca Innovation Hub incubator and their concepts will also be taken into account and applied in Qatar, which is preparing to host the 2022 World Cup.
Akbar Al Baker, Secretary General of QNTC, said: « Qatar has long supported entrepreneurship in sport. We believe that sporting events have the unique power to bring people together. That is why sport tourism is one of the six key sub-sectors in which we are investing as part of our national tourism strategy. We look forward to seeing the innovative ideas that will come out of the first sports tourism development competition and hope that one of them will come to fruition in Qatar. «
Zurab Pololikashvili of the WTO added: « As host of the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Qatar is the natural driving force behind this important project. Partner with a world sports leader such as Futbol Club Barcelona to bring together all key players on the same page, highlighting that tourism and sport are two key sectors and demonstrating that understanding and international cooperation generate opportunities and benefits for all. »
In addition, QNTC will be the main sponsor of the IE University | UNWTO Tourism Online Academy, an online platform that will provide professionals with easy access to high quality training in the areas of travel and tourism, hotels and destinations.