The Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy confirmed the policy of inviting groups of supporters to the finals as guests after reports by Dutch public broadcaster NOS, who said on Sunday that Qatar was paying for flights and hotels for a group of 50 Dutch fans.
The broadcaster cited two Dutch fans who said they had been selected by the tournament's organisers as"Fan Leaders", and who added that they had been asked to pick a group of 50 loyal supporters for the free trip to Qatar. On its website, the Qatar World Cup describes its Fan Leaders program as a network of around 400 fans and influencers from 60 countries who have offered"insights, research, content creation and message amplification," for the tournament.In its code of conduct, the SC asks the Fan Leaders to agree to incorporate its content in their social media posts and to support the World Cup by liking and re-sharing posts by third parties about the tournament.