Our first national football team has entered the final stage of its preparations to compete in the 2026 World Cup finals, after it arrived in the United States of America and established its preparatory camp in the city of Santa Barbara, in preparation for the second and final friendly match against the El Salvador national team next Saturday in Los Angeles, which represents the final rehearsal before the start of the major global event.
Al-Annabi had opened his preparatory program in the United States with his first training session after his arrival from the Irish capital, Dublin, where he played a friendly match against the Irish national team, which ended with the Qatari national team losing 1-0, in a confrontation during which the technical staff, led by Spaniard Julen Lopetegui, was keen to involve the largest possible number of players to determine their technical and physical readiness before entering the decisive stage of preparations.
The Qatari national team delegation received an official reception upon its arrival in the United States, where it was welcomed by His Excellency Sheikh Meshal bin Hamad Al Thani, Ambassador of the State of Qatar to the United States of America, who welcomed the members of the delegation and wished them success in their national mission during the upcoming participation in the World Cup finals, stressing his confidence in Al Annabi’s ability to represent Qatari football in an honorable manner that befits its status on the international scene.
The team continues its daily training at its residence in the city of Santa Barbara amid an atmosphere of focus and discipline, as the technical staff seeks to raise readiness rates and bring the players to the best technical and physical condition before the upcoming friendly match against El Salvador, which constitutes a final opportunity to try out some tactical aspects.
The confrontation with El Salvador is of great importance for the technical staff, as it is the last test before submitting the final list to FIFA, as Lopetegui is expected to settle on a list of 26 players to represent Qatar in the World Cup, after a long period of follow-up and evaluation that began from the preparatory camp in Doha through the two friendly matches against Ireland and El Salvador.
During the current days, the Spanish coach is focusing on addressing some of the observations that appeared during the first friendly match, especially with regard to offensive effectiveness and exploiting opportunities, in addition to enhancing harmony between the team’s elements and reaching the required balance between the three lines, as he seeks to prepare a team capable of providing strong levels against the world’s teams.
The technical staff is counting on the American camp to achieve the greatest amount of technical benefit, especially since the team will immediately enter the atmosphere of official competition in the World Cup, where Qatari ambitions are rising to provide a distinguished participation in the second World Cup appearance for Annabi, benefiting from the experiences that the players have acquired during the past years and from the technical stability that the team is experiencing.
An atmosphere of enthusiasm and anticipation prevails within the camp, while the players continue to implement the intensive training program with high spirit and great determination to reach full readiness before the kick-off.
The Qatari fans are anticipating the friendly match against El Salvador with great interest, as it is the last stop before the start of the World Cup journey, hoping that Al Annabi will succeed in providing a reassuring performance that confirms its readiness to compete and gives the fans confidence in the team’s ability to appear honorably and achieve positive results during the 2026 World Cup finals.
Al-Anabi received a distinguished reception upon his arrival in American territory, and all requirements were provided to ensure the comfort of the players and the technical and administrative staff, helping the team to fully focus on its preparation program during the last stage before kickoff.
Our ambassador to America receives the Qatari mission
His Excellency Sheikh Meshal bin Hamad Al Thani, Ambassador of the State of Qatar to the United States of America, received the delegation of our national team upon its arrival in the United States of America coming from the Irish capital, Dublin, in preparation for participation in the 2026 FIFA World Cup™ finals, scheduled for the United States, Mexico and Canada from June 11 to July 19. Al-Anabi will conduct its final camp in Santa Barbara, California, which is the city that will be the team’s residence throughout its participation in the World Cup.
Our international referees leave for the World Cup
The Qatari refereeing crew participating in the 2026 World Cup finals headed to the United States of America, to represent Qatari refereeing in the largest football event in the world. The crew includes international referee Abdul Rahman Al-Jassim, along with assistants Saud Ahmed and Talib Salem, while Khamis Al-Marri takes over the duties of video technology referee.
The 2026 World Cup will be held from June 11 to July 19, in a historic edition that is considered the largest since the start of the tournament, with the participation of 48 teams and 104 matches distributed among 16 host cities in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
The Qatari crew is expected to undergo a preparation camp in Miami that will last until June 9, under the supervision of the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA), as part of the final preparations for participation in the tournament.
Santa Barbara embraces our team
The technical staff of our first national football team settled on the city of Santa Barbara, in the US state of California, to be the headquarters for the Annabi camp during its participation in the 2026 World Cup finals, where the team began the final preparation phase before competing in the global tournament.
The Annabi delegation took Westmont College as its training and residence headquarters throughout its stay in the United States, in light of the availability of all the technical and logistical capabilities that help the players and the technical and administrative staff perform their tasks in the best possible way.
The team conducts its daily training on the college’s fields in an ideal atmosphere, as Spanish coach Julen Lopetegui seeks to raise the technical and physical readiness rates of the players, and work to enhance harmony among the team’s elements before entering the atmosphere of official competitions.