Official World Cup poster unveiled for Qatar 2022

Qatari artist Bouthayna Al Muftah and FIFA have revealed the Official World Cup poster for Qatar 2022, a celebration of football and Qatari and Arab culture.

The design is mostly in black-and-white, with highlights of the dark burgundy color of the Qatar flag in the official tournament logo and traditional Telstar-style ball. The imagery depicts traditional local headwear (the ‘gutra’ and ‘egal’) being thrown in the air – a common celebration amongst soccer fans in the region. Traditional headwear is a theme throughout the tournament, from the World Cup logo, the mascot, and even one of the stadium designs.

“My main inspiration was the concept of collective memory,” said Al Muftah. “Most of my work focuses on past experiences, memories, tying them to the present and archiving them in a contemporary manner. I wanted the posters to follow this theme and tell the story of Qatar’s football culture.”

FIFA Marketing Director Jean-François Pathy added “The Official Poster for Qatar 2022 is an atmospheric reflection of Qatar’s artistic and football heritage. We are very proud of this beautiful series of posters that portray Qatar’s passion for football and shines a global spotlight on such a talented, female local artist.”

A different Official World Cup Poster, to say the least

It’s a dynamic image that gives off the feeling of motion and excitement, and certainly a novel choice to forgo the more obvious subjects in the stark natural beauty of the desert/sea, sparkling futuristic Doha skyline, and shiny new stadiums and instead focus on a single aspect of the culture that is able to tell a story.

The official poster for 2022 is certainly not as colorful as the posters created for the different host cities at World Cup 2018.

In 2022, here’s hoping we get a tournament that sends a lot of headwear into the air!