Qatar World Cup fans forced to sleep rough amid SIX HOUR queues for 'sauna' cabins with leaky toilets | The Sun

WORLD Cup fan villages costing punters £175-a-night have been blighted with problems – with waits of up to six hours for access "sauna" cabins with "leaky toilets".

Qatar has a popped up a number of temporary villages to help accommodate the more than one million fans expected to descend for the sporting extravaganza.

But despite billions of pounds being ploughed into infrastructure – including an entirely new city – some of it appears to have been hastily knocked together on a tight budget ahead of the World Cup.

And as more and more fans from all over the world arrive to stay in the tents and cabins, there are increasingly reports of problems checking in and terrible conditions.

Qatari authorities admitted the camps had "not met the required stands that were advertised to fans" when contacted by The Sun Online.

And they confirmed they would be offering FULL REFUNDS to fans and free alternative accommodation.

READ MORE ON WORLD CUP

Qatar rushing to finish insane World Cup waterpark with slide as big as Big Ben

We spent £80 on TINY cold burgers & bottled beer at Qatar hotel

Two of the fan camps – Fan Village Cabins Zafaran and Fan Village Cabins Free Zone – were reportedly hitting with major issues last night.

Fans reportedly were left sleeping rough, having to find alternative accommodation or waiting for up to six hours as they couldn't access their pre-booked rooms.

Multiple fans reported problems at check in – with some even claiming they were told they simply wasn't a room for them despite having a booking confirmation after forking out hundreds of pounds.

And those that did get through complained for poor conditions not worth the price they forked out for the stay at the World Cup.

Most read in Football

The metal cabins are reported to be like "saunas" – with The Sun Online already revealing the one visited by our reporter was as hot as 37C.

Others complained of leaky toilets in the pop-ups, uncomfortable beds and a chronic lack of buses to take people to and from games.

The villages have been described as "unfinished" and pictures show workmen still on site with piles of rubble littering some of the sites.

"The beds are super hard and they only clean your room every three days – and I've had to chase down towels or toiletries," one American fan staying at Zafaran until Friday told The Sun Online.

"There is a lot of activity at the reception desk with many waiting a long time to ask question or get checked in."

"The waits don't surprise me."

One Wales fan, who arrived in Doha on Sunday, told The Sun Online his arrival was "disorganised" – and things are only getting worse.

"We were able to settle in before it has now got very busy," he said.

"The food outlets are struggling to cope and frustration is creeping in from everyone.

"There is a [two hour] wait for pizza."

What we are getting for $200 a night is not what we all expected

He added: "Overall, they are still setting it up/fixing it up, and it very much resembles a building site in places and unfinished.

"What we are getting for $200 a night is not what we all expected."

The fan said his bins or towels have not been changed since they arrived, and they are only receiving two bottles of water a day despite the blazing 30C sun.

And both the toilet and shower in his cabin are leaking,

Another football fan, who had also travelled form the US, compared the situation to the infamous Fyre Festival as hundreds of people were left stranded without food and water.

"This is outrage and now looking for other options as we have officially been robbed," he said.

"Checking in at Zafaran is an absolute disaster. Waiting for over four hours for a room."

And another fan, who travelled nearly 7,000 miles to be in Qatar from Canada, said the Free Zone Fan Village was a "complete disaster".

"People had been waiting for over four hours and all the staff just disappeared saying most of the rooms aren't ready or people haven't previously checked out," he said.

He arrived at the fanzone at 10am, had his bags taken away, but then didn't getting a room until 4am.

And another punter complained of a leaking shower and toilet in his cabin, as well as overpriced food and terrible transport links to the stadiums.

He urged all fans to use taxis.

The tiny container-style cabins house two people in a cramped bedroom with an en suite shower – and the metal structures are left baking beneath the blazing sun.

The sites have little shade – but do have food stalls, big screens to watch the games, and on-site supermarkets.

Football fans also vented their frustration on social media, with one Saudi Arabian footie fan sharing videos of huge crowds gathered outside the village.

Police were reportedly called to help keep order amongst the frustrated football fans.

He accused the authorities of "overbooking" the site – claiming many fans were left without any accomodation at all.

The dedicated "World Cup Fans" account posting a lengthy thread on the situation to its more than 4,000 followers.

The account – which provides information on tickets and accomodation for fans – vented the situation at the two villages had "turned the joy of fans into misery".

"Hundreds of fans from different countries of the world who have confirmed reservations in the fan villages suffered and are still suffering from mismanagement of the fan villages," it wrote.

It went on: "The majority of the rooms have been received and are in a dirty state in the full sense of the word and are not suitable for human habitation

"The majority of cabins have a problem with air conditioning, and there is no solution, and they have become more like sauna rooms, especially during the day."

Qatar has already faced questions over organisation of the World Cup – with reports weeks before the start that the nation simply was not ready.

Confusion over the sale of beer, infrastructure problems and reports of crowd trouble at the fanzone have already surfaced.

The tiny country is expected to welcome more than one million fans during the tournament – when the country only has a population of 2.9million.

Billions have been spent to try and ready the nation for its first attempt at holding an event of this scale.

In a statement the Qatari Supreme Committee told The Sun Online: "We are aware that a number of fans have faced delays checking into select Fan Village accommodation due to owner and operator negligence. 

"A section of units in these facilities, which are delivered and managed by different private entities, have not met the required standards that were advertised to fans.

Read More on The Sun

Code to spot for £600 cost of living payment landing in bank accounts from today

I have UPVC door, there’s a switch to make it less draughty this winter

"While these sites are managed by independent commercial entities, rectifying these issues remains the utmost priority for the Supreme Committee. 

"Full refunds are being offered to fans severely impacted by this issue as well as alternative accommodation which will be free of charge for the duration of their stay."  

Source: Read Full Article