sport news Doha city centre remains eerily quiet despite World Cup festival set to take ... trends now Doha city centre remains EMPTY despite the World Cup kicking off later on Sunday... with little sign of the ONE MILLION travelling football fans on the streets of the capital ahead of the tournament opener involving hosts Qatar Doha city centre remains eerily quiet despite the World Cup starting today There was little sign of fanfare despite football festival getting underway later There are an estimated one million football fans travelling to Qatar this month By Vivek Chaudhary For Mailonline Published: 12:25 GMT, 20 November 2022 | Updated: 12:30 GMT, 20 November 2022 Viewcomments Streets around stadiums and in Doha city centre were eerily quiet just hours before the world's greatest football festival gets underway. There was little sign of the usual fanfare of other World Cups when fans gather noisily in central locations or visit stadiums to take pictures. Outside the Khalifa stadium, where England opens its World Cup campaign against Iran tomorrow the only people visible were security guards and migrant workers doing some last minute preparations. At the Education Stadium a fierce wind ripped through a long empty road surrounding as a handful of security staff milled around. A lone cleaner was picking up rubbish outside the 974 Stadium as some security staff looked on. One said: 'I thought it was going to be a lot busier but all we've got here are workers and no fans. It's not a very exciting start to the World Cup'. The streets of Doha are eerily quiet given that it's the first day of the World Cup fixtures It's surprisingly empty given the fact the World Cup fanfare will begin later on this afternoon There is little sign of the one million fans travelling across the world for the competition Things were equally quiet in central Doha and on the city's metro with little sign of the estimated one million football fans who are believed to be visiting the country for the tournament. Qatar had been accused of paying hundreds of 'fake fans' to sing and dance in a series of choreographed videos ahead of the World Cup. Footage emerged of various 'fan parades' in Doha this week, ahead of the tournament's big kick-off this Sunday, including celebrations featuring supporters supposedly from England, Brazil, Argentina and several other nations. Two Wales supporters walk through a market as they await their country's opening match Share or comment on this article: All rights reserved for this news site (dailymail) and under his responsibility