Qatar Football Association
| AFC | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Founded | 1960 |
| FIFA affiliation | 1972 |
| AFC affiliation | 1974 |
| President | Hamad Bin Khalifa Bin Ahmed Al-Thani |
| Website | http://www.qfa.com.qa |
The Qatar Football Association (Arabic: الاتحاد القطري لكرة القدم) is the governing body of football in Qatar.
The advent of football at Qatar dates back to the year of 1946, accompanied by the arrival of oil companies. The new game's popularity expanded immediately, which led to the establishment of Al Najah as the country’s first football club in 1950.
These ongoing efforts contributed to the formation of the first governing body in Qatari sport "the athletic union" headed by Sheikh Suhaim bin Hamad alongside Hitmi Al Hitmi, Majed bin Saad, and Khalifa Al Mutawah.
However, this committee lasted only for a few months, due to the resignation of its members.
Unlike nowadays, the organization of football lacked competence and experience. So matches were arranged by oral agreement or by simply writing a letter, conventionally, bringing a cup was the responsibility of the team that called for the match in the first place.
Under the supervision of Qatar Oil Company, the first football tournament ever in Qatar was held at the city of Dukhan. Despite the participation of several Doha teams – including Al Najah – host team Dukhan managed to win the 1951 Izzadeen tournament.
Qatar Oil Company replaced the old competition with a new one, Pukett Cup kicked off during the 1957 season, Al Najah went on to win the cup for the first time in their history.
Whether locally or regionally, rules and regulations were not very restrictive about players moving from one club to another, just a resignation letter and 10 Indian rupees were required of the player who wished to move. This undemanding system was in effect until the year 1962.
The Qatar Football Association was formed in 1970 to govern football in Qatar. The Association organized the first Qatar League in 1972-73.
Former president of the Qatar Football Association, Abd Al-Rahman al-Nuaimi, has been linked to various terrorist groups including al-Qaeda and Asbat an-Ansar. In 2013, the U.S. Department of the Treasury labeled the former head of the Qatar Football Association as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) for his role in transferring funds from Qatar-based donors to al-Qaeda and al-Shabaab. The U.S. Department of the Treasury accused al-Nuaimi of overseeing the transfer of over $2 million per month to al-Qaeda in Iraq "for a period of time."
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